Feature filmmaker (Up in the Air, Juno) Jason Reitman directed this spot for the 2016 Honda Pilot Elite via production house Bob Industries for agency RPA. Titled “Even Better,” the :60 thrusts us into what starts as a boring, mundane road trip. However, inside the Pilot, momentum builds for a song which family members begin to sing until they have a collective festive chorus.
This shared family moment features the classic song, Weezer’s “Buddy Holly,” that connects with parents and kids alike. The first notes are immediately recognizable by Honda’s target buyers who now have families of their own, and who remember that song from happy days of their youth.
Credits
Client Honda Agency RPA Joe Baratelli, executive VP, chief creative officer; Jason Sperling, sr. VP, executive creative director; Ken Lin, creative director/art; Sarah May Bates, creative director/copy; Audrey Attal, Forrest Boleyn, sr. copywriters; Dalit Saad, art director; Dennis Haynes, jr. art director; Megan Leinfelder, jr. copywriter; Gary Paticoff, sr. VP, chief production officer; Isadora Chesler, VP, executive producer; Tracy Jones, Phung Vo, producers. Production Bob Industries Jason Reitman, director; TK Knowles, John O’Grady, Chuck Ryant, exec producers; Bart Lipton, unit production manager; Eric Steelberg, DP. Editorial Spotwelders Haines Hall, editor; Oli Hecks, assistant editor; Evan Cunningham, producer; Caroline Sanborn, exec producer. VFX/Finishing Shipping + Handling Casey Price, creative director/lead; Lauren Riedel Nishikawa, Flame artist; Lisa English, sr. post producer. Postproduction Company 3 Dave Hussey, colorist. Audio Post Lime Studios Loren Silber, Dave Wagg, mixers. Music Song: Weezer, “Buddy Holly”
The Ad Council, partnering with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and AdoptUSKids, launched a public service campaign, created pro bono by Edelman, which aims to inspire prospective parents to consider adopting a teen from foster care.
This centerpiece PSA titled “The Rewards”--directed by The Hudson Dusters (Michael Kuhn and Niles Roth) via Greenpoint Pictures--spotlights real adoptive families who have personally experienced the mutual benefits of adoption. This longer form PSA (and cutdown versions) begins with a touching display of openness and vulnerability as adoptive parents reflect on their adoption journeys and their initial questions and hesitations about adopting a teen. Then, in a deeply emotional turn, the adoptive parents witness their children recounting the profound rewards of adoption in their lives. The teens speak of the love they share with their parents and how the decision to become a family is reciprocal. The campaign directs viewers to the AdoptUSKids website to learn more about adopting a teen from foster care.
