“Luck be a lady tonight,” famously crooned the legendary Frank Sinatra. Fast forward to today and in that spirit the Lady Luck theme re-emerges in a California Lottery spot created by ad agency David&Goliath, El Segundo, Calif.
In this :30, Lady Luck takes the form of a lovely, somewhat mysterious woman dressed in black. We see her piloting a speedboat motoring across the Pacific Ocean. A quick shot of her hand on the controls reveals she’s wearing a gold ring on which is spelled “Lady Luck.” She turns her attention to an on-board monitor screen on which the image of a man appears.
The speedboat heads straight for the Santa Monica pier and we next see her walking towards its end, bringing luck to those playing each carnival game she passes along the way. Four contestants shooting a game of mini-basketball successful make shots seemingly in unison. They cannot believe what happened yet still are triumphant, the first harbinger of a recurrent theme.
Further down the pier, a woman of slight build is then seen bringing down a hammer with such force that it amazingly rings the bell to win a prize, setting off pyrotechnics against the backdrop of a night sky. People around her celebrate in disbelief.
Lady Luck then reaches her intended destination at the far reaches of the pier where a couple is seated on a bench, looking out onto the water. The guy, though, isn’t totally focused on the deep blue. Instead he is scratching a California Black Exclusive Scratchers ticket. The man is the same one who appeared on the speedboat’s digital screen.
Unbeknownst to the couple, Lady Luck is behind them, looking over the guy’s shoulder. She gently blows on the scratcher card, kicking up some magic dust and revealing a $1 million icon. Lady Luck walks off as the couple celebrates, still somewhat in disbelief that their ship has come in. A parting tag showing the Scratcher Tickets includes the slogan, “Luck will find you.”
Directed by feature filmmaker Todd Field of production house Smuggler, this spot is part of an integrated campaign in which Lady Luck will be brought to life in the real world.
Deploying an innovative real-time approach to augmented reality, Lady Luck was at press time slated to magically appear on-screen at LA Live in downtown Los Angeles, interacting with unsuspected bystanders. Using a combination of on-screen animations and real-world props, Lady Luck will entertain the crowd and eventually bestow a little luck on a select few.
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More