Droga5’s first national campaign for Quilted Northern deploys tongue-in-cheek humor. The toilet paper’s “Designed to be Forgotten” campaign breaks with six TV spots directed by Oscar nominee Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher, Capote) of production house Smuggler.
The commercials focus on the unfortunate predicaments that objects confront in the bathroom. These objects are stationary and thus trapped in a room with a clear view of the toilet. While people can come in and enjoy Quilted Northern–almost take the toilet paper for granted and not give it a second thought–decorative and other objects in the bathroom are filled with thoughts of what they are witnessing.
Daddy Gator is one such object. At the helm of a toy boat perched on the sink, Daddy Gator and his passenger son can go nowhere. We hear his thoughts about the plight facing him and his son.
Credits
Client Quilted Northern Agency Droga5 NY David Droga, creative chairman; Ted Royer, chief creative officer; David Gibson, Nathan Lennon, Mike Long, Alex Lea, creative directors; Molly Jamison, Eric Dennis, art directors/copywriters; SallyAnn Dale, chief creation officer; Ben Davies, head of broadcast production; Anders Hedberg, sr. broadcast producer; Jonny Bauer, global chief strategy officer; Matt Springate, group strategy director; Nick Maschmeyer, sr. strategist. Production Smuggler Bennett Miller, director; Patrick Milling Smith, Brian Carmody, Shannon Jones, exec producers; Suzie Greene Tedesco, producer; Adam Kimmel, DP. Editorial Exile Conor O’Neill, editor; Rex Lowry, assistant editor; CL Weaver, exec producer; Denice Hutton, producer. Postproduction Method NY/Atlanta Mike Wardner Glen Bennett, Jay Tilin, Flame artists; Jennifer Hargreaves, head of production; Natalie Wroble, producer. Music Adelphoi Jamie Masters, Andrew Sherriff, Ashley Bates, Stephen Patman, composers; Jonathan Watts, Lotte Bowser, producers.
After losing part of his right leg due to cancer, Terry Fox campaigned to raise national awareness and funding for cancer research by running his Marathon of Hope, a cross-Canada 42-km daily run, on his prosthetic leg. Fox, who died in 1981, is a national hero. His image will be on Canada’s new $5 bill.
In this two-minute video titled “Finish It,” the Marathon of Hope is recreated. It’s all done in one take, and it features an actor/marathon runner who uses a prosthesis on the same leg as Fox. CGI was deployed to make him look more like Fox. To further ensure the actor represented Fox accurately, not only did the actor and team watch and study many videos of Terry, but Terry’s brothers, Fred and Darrel, coached the actor on Terry’s running style and mannerisms. They also created a copy of Terry’s prosthesis for the actor to use for the shoot.
The message is clear. As the Marathon of Hope now marks its 45th anniversary, we now have the opportunity to “Finish It” for Fox, raising money and awareness to get a cure for cancer over the finish line, completing the work that Fox started. The public service film starts with Fox on the marathon run, eventually joined by a crowd of other dedicated runners from all walks of life who take over the race.
Mark Zibert directed via production company Scouts Honour for Toronto agency Diamond. The video features a never-before-heard version of the song “Courage” from Canadian band The Tragically Hip.
“We wanted to create a campaign that captures the magnitude of Terry Fox’s legacy while driving meaningful action,” said Peter Ignazi, chief creative officer at Diamond. “By revisiting the Marathon of Hope with such care and reverence, we aimed to reignite Terry’s mission and... Read More
