That ought to hold if the weather turns," declares an outdoorsy-looking man in close-up. He’s been pitching a tent and is hammering a last spike into the ground. "Here, you try," he encourages his young son, handing him the hammer.
"OK," responds the lad, quietly confident.
"Watch your fingers," cautions the proud father.
But this touching parent-child communion with nature takes an abrupt detour when the deafening sound of a big-rig truck drowns out the chirping of birds—and the truck itself speeds past, within inches of the campsite.
Cut to a younger boy, fighting with a bending fishing pole: "Hey, dad, I got something!" he shouts excitedly.
"Hang on," calls the man from afar, as an overhead shot reveals that he and his family are camping on the median strip of a busy freeway interchange. Mother and daughter cook hotdogs over their makeshift barbecue grill: a metal trashcan.
Back to the younger son, who has hooked his big one through an open manhole on another median. Dad, waving a net, leaps forward to get over there. But he risks life and limb trying to cross multiple lanes of heavy, high-speed, screeching freeway traffic. The spot freeze-frames on Dad, mid-peril.
In voiceover actor David Duchovny interjects, "What are you going to tell your kids when there’s no wilderness left?"
"Help save our open spaces," states Duchovny, as a super against a thickly forested background shows the Pew Wilderness Center Logo and Web site address.
In the live-action final shot, the father is still trying to dodge traffic. Nearly run over, he yells defensively, "Hey! I’m camping here!"
Minneapolis-based marketing communications and political consulting firm North Woods Advertising conceived this :30, aptly titled "Campground," to help the Pew Wilderness Center, an organization recently launched with the goal of adding 55 million acres of wilderness to protected land status over the next 10 years.
The spot was helmed by noted feature/TV actor, director and writer Peter Berg via Los Angeles-based Slo. Graffiti, a division of Palomar Pictures, Los Angeles. Berg took on the ad as a special assignment outside his ongoing spot representation deal with New York-headquartered Shooting Gallery Productions.
"We all know the environment is under attack from this new administration in Washington," contended Berg. "So we need to do everything we can to ensure that our wild places remain open and unspoiled."
The North Woods team included chief creative officer Bill Hillsman and agency president John Blackshaw. Laura Howard executive-produced for Slo.Graffiti. Jeanne Stack was producer. DP Michael Ozier shot "Campground" on location.
Colby Parker Jr. edited the spot via Cosmo Street, Santa Monica, with visual effects by Asylum Visual Effects, Santa Monica.
Colorist was John Zaik of Company 3, Santa Monica. Audio mixer was Hunter Crowley via Sound Dogs, Los Angeles.
The spot debuted in several select U.S. markets, including: Boise, Idaho; Des Moines; Duluth, Minn.; Fargo, N.D.; Las Vegas; Lincoln, Neb.; Little Rock; St. Louis; and Salt Lake City.
