This latest spot in Sheraton’s “Go Beyond” campaign out of agency Venables Bell & Partners ties into the hotel chain’s partnership with Major League Baseball.
We see a Sheraton associate running hard around the bases at a baseball stadium with a glove under her arm while a colleague waves her toward home plate. As the tension builds and she slides into home, the scene transitions quickly to the lobby of a Sheraton, revealing that she was running through the hotel the whole time. She reaches an elevator just in time to hand the glove she was carrying to a young Cub’s fan on his way to the ballpark who had misplaced it. The commercial serves as the latest example that no matter how big or small, Sheraton folks “Go Beyond: so that their guests can too.
Mark Albiston of The Sweet Shop directed this piece which was cut by Martin Leroy of Whitehouse Post.
Credits
Client Marriott International, Inc./Sheraton Agency Venables Bell & Partners Paul Venables, founder/chairman; Will McGinness, partner, executive creative director; Lee Einhorn, associate partner/creative director; Mike McGuire, copywriter; Tim Green, Sarah Ross, art directors; Craig Allen, director of integrated production; Julia Oetker-Kast, producer. Production The Sweet Shop Mark Albiston, director; Ryley Brown, DP; Laura Thoel, managing director/exec producer; Preston Garrett, exec producer; John Malina, line producer. Editorial Whitehouse Post Martin Leroy, editor; Brian Gavin, assistant editor; Joni Williamson, exec producer; Leah Carnahan, producer. Music Songs for Film & TV Mauricio Gasca, composer; David Fisher, music supervisor. Audio Post One Union Matt Zipkin, mixer. Lauren Mask, producer. Sound Design Therapy Studios Eddie Kim, lead sound designer; Cait Campbell, producer. VFX Carbon VFX John Price, creative director; Matt McManus, VFX exec producer; Devon Irete, VFX producer. Color Company 3 Sean Coleman, colorist.
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
