Venables Bell + Partners’ “Always On” campaign for Audi of America includes this spot, “Previous Owner,” directed by Sam Pilling of Pulse Films.
“Previous Owner” offers up a distinct Audi take on the current pandemic-fueled luxury housing boom, with a twist on the haunted house genre. A young couple shopping for a new home are willing to overlook some serious red flags when they discover the impressive RS Q8 parked in the garage and learn that the house “comes with everything you see.”
This campaign additionally marks the launch of the new voice of Audi for all marketing efforts in the U.S., actress Nkeki Obi-Melekwe.
Credits
Client Audi of America Agency Venables Bell + Partners Paul Venables, founder, chairman; Will McGinness, partner, executive creative director; Matt Miller, Matt Keats, creative directors; Allie Nordstrom, Elliot Nordstrom, associate creative directors; Lachlan Palmer Hubbard, sr. art director; Jake Reilly, sr. copywriter; Hilary Coate, director of integrated production; Melanie Fedunok, executive producer; Zach Zutler, producer; Mike Riley, group strategy director; Cody Levin, strategy director; Gabi Levi, sr. strategist. Production Pulse Films Sam Pilling, director; Davud Karbassioun, global president of commercials; Hillary Rogers, managing director/exec producer; Nick Fuller, head of production; Adriana Debada Mora, producer; Pat Scola, DP; Chris Jones, production designer; Jennifer Johnson, costume designer. Editorial Exile Shane Reid, editor; Ersin Dogruer, assistant editor; CL Kumpata, exec producer; Jennifer Locke, head of production; Michael Miller, sr. producer. VFX, Color Grade & Finish Blacksmith Gavin Miljkovich, shoot supervisor; Iwan Zwarts, lead compositor; Mikey Pehanich, colorist; Ashley Goodwin, VFX producer; Charlotte Arnold, exec producer. Sound Design Gus Koven, sound designer. Audio Post Matt Keith, mixer; Brad Beasley, assistant mixer.
How do you top one of the most viral brand videos ever made? Spoiler alert: you can’t. But when Dollar Shave Club tapped Zack Seckler to direct a new campaign to revive the absurdist humor of its iconic launch video, he knew he had a rare opportunity to create something special.
The brief was simple: introduce the concept of a physical “Club” that people would love to join while showcasing Dollar Shave Club’s products and embracing the weird. From script to direction and post, Seckler--an alum of SHOOT’s 2021 New Directors Showcase--was invited to help sculpt that vision.
The result is this “Welcome to the Club” spot which invites us to join a unique, seemingly exclusive but in reality an accessible and affordable fraternity of Dollar Shave Club members. But you need to know the password or more accurately, the two-word phrase--"shave money."
“The Club” campaign brings the brand back to its humorous roots, reflecting a new chapter after being acquired by Nexus Capital Management from Unilever in late 2023. The work takes Dollar Shave Club back to its disruptive beginnings and what made the brand a viral sensation from its inception in 2011.
