Today WhatsApp released the final spot from their global privacy campaign, a collaboration with BBDO Berlin. Courtney Hoffman of London-based production company Lief brings a fresh perspective to the “Message Privately” campaign, marking her commercial directing debut with the collection of three spots.
Utilising a rich visual palette, the ads showcase the Facebook-owned app’s end-to-end encryption feature. End-to-end encryption technology adds layers of protection, ensuring only you and the recipient have access to your messages. Nobody else, not even WhatsApp, has access to your conversations.
Keeping things fun with pops of colour and a bouncy vibrancy throughout, Lief and Hoffman’s devotion to creating standout work demonstrates a richness in storytelling from an entertainment mindset. Hoffman is no stranger to working within this world; for the past decade she has worked as a lauded costume designer for commercial and film, with credits including Baby Driver, The Hateful Eight, and Captain Fantastic.
It’s no surprise, then, that every detail of the WhatsApp campaign oozes a filmmaker-forward approach, featuring spot-on costume, art direction, cinematography, and great casting of actors, while the original music by award-winning composer Emile Mosseri (Minari, Kajilionaire) brings a playfulness and spirited energy to each spot.
The first ad “Double Date” transports the viewer to an awkward restaurant scene, where one couple dominates the conversation. Rather than delivering a nudge or kick, the quieter twosome WhatsApp one another privately under the table, then share a knowing glance. In “Dream Job,” a woman receives notice of a career-changing decision while in the loo, then proceeds to take a victory exit lap out of the office. A feel-good aura pervades the final spot “Secret Language,” revealing the behind-the-scenes education that went into learning the language of a loved one.
Curating the right filmmaker for the creative brief is a hallmark of Lief’s, as Founder/Executive Producer Margo Mars is known for guiding completely new and unlikely talent to land major commercial projects. A reputation well-earned, as evidenced by this campaign-helming debut, wherein Hoffman details the privacy benefits of WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption with confidence, panache, and just the right amount of cheek.
"Working with Lief, BBDO and WhatsApp was a creatively empowering experience,” Hoffman remarks. “I had a tremendous amount of trust and freedom throughout the entire creative process, from casting primarily theatre actors to using bold colours and crafting the scores. I loved the challenge to tell full, ambitious, visual stories in 30 seconds and I hope this proves that when you give women a chance, that fresh, exciting, new perspectives can be unleashed. Margo Mars proves that when we champion each other, incredible things can happen."
Watch “Double Date” here: https://youtu.be/4No15y1Z4As
Watch “Dream Job” here: https://vimeo.com/563649405
Watch “Secret Language” here: https://youtu.be/4z-AXTyF3yo
About Courtney Hoffman
Courtney Hoffman has spent the last decade working in Costume Design for features and commercials. Her recent credits include Baby Driver, The Hateful Eight, and Captain Fantastic. She prides herself on creating characters with a cultural pervasiveness that really penetrate society and it was only natural for her to make the move to shape the entire story.
Leaving a prestigious career as a Costume Designer behind, Courtney Hoffman wrote and directed her debut short film “The Good Time Girls” to wide acclaim. The unique short stars Laura Dern and was released as part of Refinery 29’s Shatterbox Anthology.
In addition to the feature adaptation of “The Good Time Girls”, Courtney now has features in development with Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, and J.J. Abrams and his company Bad Robot. Most recently her former career was immortalized on screen as she portrays the Costume Designer alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in Tarantino’s Once upon a Time.. In Hollywood.
Courtney is looking forward to directing many more female forward, visually bold stories that are highly creative as well as commercially appealing.
www.lief.london/courtney-hoffman // Instagram: @courtneydirects
About Lief
Founded by Margo Mars in 2017, Lief is a filmmaker-led production company dedicated to making high quality content and providing access to exceptional talents with an unmistakably individual style.
Keen to continue strengthening its reputation for creating short-form content, Lief is bound to continue creating award-winning work, especially under Mars’ watchful and nurturing eye.
As one of the most respected and well-known creative producers in the UK, she counts awards from Cannes Lions, D&AD, Clios, Ciclope, British Arrows, LIA, Campaign, MVA, VMA, Kinsale, SHOTS and Tribeca X under her belt.
Lief is an official partner of Free The Work, and is known to promote and celebrate inclusivity.
Connect with Lief
Instagram: @we.are.lief // Twitter: @we_are_lief // www.lief.london
