The Ad Council and R/GA teamed on a film series, “Love Lives On,” as part of the continuing Love Has No Labels campaign. At a time when over half (55%) of adults say race relations in the U.S. are bad, this film series–featuring a short anthem film and three PSAs–proves that love lives on when you respond to acts of hate, bias and discrimination with intentional acts of love that support communities and create a more inclusive, just, and equitable society.
Unveiled at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, this pro-bono campaign was written, created and produced by a diverse creative team led by Shannon Washington, SVP, executive creative director at R/GA. It was a very emotional process for the team to ensure that even the smallest details reflected the reverence and authenticity of Bridgett Floyd’s, Maddy Park’s, and Barbara Poma’s stories.
Directed by Andre Muir of production house SMUGGLER, this anthem film titled The Gentle Giant tells the story of Bridgett Floyd, sister of George Floyd whose murder by Minneapolis police made worldwide headlines, propelling the Black Lives Matter movement and the fight for racial justice. The story of George Floyd as a family man, mentor and community member has not been widely shared. In a heartfelt and deeply personal account, Bridgett Floyd shares the powerful bond between her and her brother. Bridgett celebrates the love, joy, and light that George Floyd brought to his family and the world–and how she has turned the pain of his death into purpose through the establishment of the George Floyd Memorial Foundation. Though his life was tragically cut short by an act of violence and injustice, his legacy and love can live on through each one of us when we continue to fight for racial justice.
The Gentle Giant is slated to stream on Hulu.
Credits
Client Ad Council/Love Has No Labels campaign Agency R/GA Tiffany Rolfe, global chief creative officer; Shannon Washington, Erin Lynch, SVPs, executive creative directors; Fernando Hernandez, executive creative director; JJ Lim, creative director; Pawel Rokicki, design director; Rowan Mansfield, Corey Thorn, Julian Soto, Artiana Wynder, associate creative directors; Vitor Lessa, art director; Anslem Samuel Roque, editorial research & interviewer; Chris Detoy, executive director, content production; Erica Jensen, director, content studio; Lauren Powzyk, sr. content producer; Yassmina Fandi, sr. content producer, art; Jeff Skutnik, executive production director; Pete Jones, executive producer; Vitor Rossellini, sr. producer; Christian Kugel, SVP, global head of insights; Lucien Etori, VP, executive strategy director; Brandon Heard, sr. strategist; Aaron Francois, sr. connections strategist; Jess Vande Werken, creative director, experience design; Aaron Kelly, associate creative director, experience; David Holm, associate engineering director. Production SMUGGLER Andre Muir, director; Patrick Milling-Smith, Brian Carmody, Jaclyn Larson, exec producers; Alex Hughes, head of production; Manny Caston, producer; Svetlana Dekic, production supervisor; Adam Hein, 1st AD; Oliver Millar, DP; Maren Jensen, production designer; Jodi Sonnenberg, casting director; Elise Velasco, wardrobe stylist. Editorial Cabin Edit Nathan Rodgers, editor; Dominique Machain, assistant editor; Maggie Meade, managing director; Andrea Cantor, post producer; Adam Becht, exec producer. VFX/Finishing Shape + Light Cara Lehr, exec producer; Austin Lewis, lead Flame artist; Pat Hunsberger, Aaron Neitz, Flame artists; Joe Abou Sakher, VFX producer; Rob Trent, creative director. Color Blacksmith Mikey Pehanich, colorist; Sam Howells, color assistant; Ashley Goodwin, color producer; Charlotte Arnold, exec producer. Music Barking Owl Kelly Bayett, creative director; Ashley Benton, exec producer; Lily McCann, assistant producer; Jacob Plasse, composer. Sound Design/Audio Post One Thousand Birds Hayley Livingston, Myra Al-Rahim, sound design/mix; Jackiel Zhou, additional sound design; Alex Berner-Coe, producer; Maya Kotomori, asociate producer. Licensing & Art Partners Jelani Rice, Ron Kurokawa, Nijalon Du’Boi, Getty Images, XYZ Graphics
Can a sip of coffee spark progress? Family-owned company rolls out its first-ever brand awareness endeavor and illustrates a sustainable future.
A startling statistic: 80 million plastic coffee pods go into landfills daily. One week of this waste could circle the Earth, while one day could stretch from New York to San Francisco.
Committed to using coffee as a vehicle to create enduring change, the responsibly-sourced coffee brand, San Francisco Bay Coffee – which is owned by the Rogers Family Company – along with its creative and media agency of record, Cutwater, have partnered together to launch an all-new brand platform and integrated “One Small Sip For a Better Tomorrow” campaign which includes a series of playful, vibrant animation films, including this anthem piece which shows various people drinking coffee--with a flood of coffee pods falling out of their java mugs.
The remedy: San Francisco Bay Coffee and its certified commercially compostable OneCUP™ coffee pods.
Production and animation were spearheaded by Psyop and Wizz. The pieces were brought to life by directing duo Remus & Kiki. Music, sound design, and audio post were executed by Antfood.
“San Francisco Bay Coffee is the David in a category of Goliaths, yet they hold more true to values and practices we all want from our coffee brands. In addition to great tasting coffee, they innovate toward a better tomorrow. So if we want to make these great leaps of change, all it now takes is one small sip,” explained Cutwater founder and chief creative officer Chuck McBride. “We chose animation because the story needed a special way to help people understand the benefits of compostable pods in a not too serious way.”
