Teenagers speak multiple languages, dance around their living rooms and pierce their tongues in a series of :30s shot on digital video. At the end of each, the words "Don’t Hold Back" appear on the screen, along with a logo and address (www.bolt.com). But what’s it all about?
Creatives at Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH), New York, wanted the campaign for online teen community Bolt to reflect the site’s member-driven ethos. And according to creative director Ty Montague, "Bolt’s mission is, ‘We provide the context, teens provide the content.’ We thought, ‘They don’t need ‘advertising’—they need to move their brand into different media.’ " That is, with 3.5 million members, Bolt didn’t need to advertise itself, per se; what it needed to do was promote its members somewhere other than on the Internet.
On television, Bolt’s mandate remains mysterious, and Montague likes it that way: "I think a lot of marketers make the mistake of explaining stuff in too great detail to the teenage audience." By not revealing what the site is about, BBH hopes to jumpstart "tremendous word-of-mouth buzz" to create intrigue and, hopefully, to generate hits.
Montague observed, "The campaign isn’t designed to function in the normal way—that is, show spot, spot makes you want product, check out product. In this case we’ve moved Bolt’s premise of letting members provide their own content into the broadcast medium." The spots will also be put up on the site and Bolters, as they are known, "will give their opinions and be encouraged to do their own spots. For the next round, we’re stepping completely out of the loop. This is designed to kick-start the conversation between Bolt and teens."
To do this, BBH required a director who was comfortable with the enigmatic nature of the campaign and could help the teens provide their own content. BBH had worked with bicoastal Thru-Line’s (a division of bicoastal/international Chelsea Pictures) Gregg Hale of Haxan Films, Orlando, Fla., on an undisclosed project. And an affinity
for the mysterious was not unknown to Hale, either: The Haxans (Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sanchez, Robin Cowie, Hale and Michael Monello) are the team behind 1999’s The Blair Witch Project, which thrived on word-of-mouth buzz and a documentary look—qualities BBH sought. Montague pointed out, "We knew we had to find someone who is comfortable with controlled chaos. And that immediately resonated with the whole Blair Witch thing."
Luckily, Hale had no problem relinquishing control: "I wanted to allow chaos to happen; in fact, at times I was encouraging chaos. That was what made it interesting to me—the element of the unknown, where you let reality dictate what happens," he explained.
In a campaign in which the performers are responsible for the scripts, finding the right Bolters was of paramount importance. BBH developed scenarios covering a range of emotions and activities. Hale recalled, "We looked for kids who fit the spirit, and then let the kids themselves expand on the idea." Although a casting agent originally sent actors to the call, BBH used nonprofessionals while filming in Orlando. In fact, some of the spots come directly from the members themselves—"Lyle," featuring a skateboarder who tumbles to the ground, came from a Bolter. Hale and BBH ended up with over 20 spots featuring teens doing everything from rearranging letters on signs to form silly phrases, to stripping in a clothing store to protest workers’ conditions in foreign countries.
In the spirit of self-produced content, in some cases Hale just gave the subjects a camera and asked them to tell their stories. "Instead of having a big crew there, if it was appropriate, we just gave them a camera and let them go shoot it," said Hale. This was the case with the heartrending "Broken Heart," in which an unseen boy stutters, "We were going to lose … lose each other’s virginity…" addressing his ex-girlfriend, his expressionless first love. Part of the spot’s appeal is the awkwardness and sheer embarrassment of watching such gawky, unscripted emotion, Hale believes. "The silliness and imperfection of it," he began, "it’s not perfect—the kids aren’t models. I think that’s what helps it work." When they met the Bolter who would make "Broken Heart," Hale recalled, "He told us this story and we were like, ‘Stop right there. There’s the camera; go do your thing.’ "
BBH and Hale wanted to preserve the homemade quality in editing the spots. "We edited to make it look like a kid could have done it. And, hopefully, in time kids will edit their own spots anyway," copywriter Eran Thomson observed. Editor Carlos Arias, who at the time was with Consulate, New York, did all of the post work on the Avid. (Arias is now at Final Cut, New York and London.) "We didn’t enhance it—it was all at the same resolution," Arias explained. Most of the editing was in audio. "The aim was to do as little as possible. We didn’t take away their control; we articulated their stories."
Thomson was responsible for "Don’t Hold Back," the tag that appears at the end of every commercial. The phrase expresses both the site’s commitment to personal expression and its potential for expansion. Montague pointed out, "The brand is something that can grow; ultimately it could live on TV, or as a magazine. We wanted a set of words that expressed the essence of Bolt."
Thomson is already anticipating more offerings from Bolters. "We’re all really excited to see what the next round of tapes will show," he said.
The Haxans are currently in preproduction for the feature The Heart of Love and In Search of, a FOX-TV series.
The Bolt campaign was created by Bartle Bogle Hegarty, New York’s Montague, creative director; Thomson, copywriter; Rob Baird, art director; and Mary Cheney, producer. The spots were directed by The Haxans’ Hale via Thru-Line; the Bolters served as DPs. Jeanine Pepler is the head of Thru-Line; Allison Amon is Chelsea’s executive producer. Arias, then via Consulate, New York, edited, mixed and composited the spots. Other Consulate credits include online editor Patrick Burns, assistant editor Ruth Mamaril, graphics/title artist Sarah Mackinney, executive producer Amy Saunders and producer Lisa Binassarie.
