When a guy’s truck conks out, he lifts up the hood to reveal how powerless his horsepower had made him. Under the hood are hybrid human/horse characters (actually folks in cheesy horse costumes) who are lazy and insist that in order to rev up they need the gent to sing a ridiculous “Pretty Pretty Pony” song and then accompany it with a dance.
At the mercy of his “lazy horses,” the man sings and dances only to be seen by the driver of a Nissan TITAN truck who stops to lend a hand, thus rescuing our song-and-dance man.
The Traktor collective via production houses Rattling Stick and Traktor directed this offbeat spot as agency TBWAChiatDay New York turns to humor in a product category not known for it.
TITAN is disrupting the myth that to be a serious truck, you have to have serious advertising. Comedy appeals to the younger truck buyer–as does the TITAN which sports a customer base that has tapped into the GenX demographic.
Credits
Client Nissan Agency TBWAChiatDay New York Chris Garbutt, global chief creative officer; Darren Borrino, Rob Rutherford, creative directors; Adam Naccarato art director; Matt Sullivan, copywriter; Jason Souter, head of integrated production; Matt Flaherty, executive producer; Olivia Whyte, associate integrated producer. Production Rattling Stick/Traktor Traktor, director; Joe Biggins, Jeff Shupe, executive producers; Richard Ulfvengren, exec producer/Traktor; Richard McIntosh, head of production; Rachel Curl, producer; Wendal Scott Reeder, production manager. Editorial Final Cut Editorial Ed Cheesman, editor; Andre Castiglioni, assistant editor; Sarah Roebuck, exec producer; Laura Cavanaugh, post producer. Audio Post Heard City Phil Loeb, miser; Andi Lewis, producer; Sasha Awn, exec producer. Postproduction/VFX The Mill Heath Raymond, exec producer; Nirad “Bugs” Russell, Abi Klimaszewska, sr. producers; Ted Rae, shoot supervisor; Fergus McCall, colorist; Rochelle Brown, color sr. producer; Jade Kim, Jeff Robbins, lead compositors; Gabriel Kim, Rachael Moon, Dhruv Shankar, assistant compositors; Clemens den Exter, designer. Music Beacon Street Studios Beacon Street, composers; Adrea Lavezoli, exec producer.
Rappers Khuli Chana, Blxckie and 25K team up with Patriot Films director Sam Coleman, who is repped by Ridley Scott Associates (RSA) stateside, to celebrate the power of inspiration for KFC Streetwise and Ogilvy Johannesburg.
Every groundbreaking artist has a story, a moment of inspiration that drives their next wave of creativity. But this doesn’t happen in isolation--original needs to feed original. “There’s a wealth of creative energy bubbling up in the youth of South Africa,” said Coleman. “Everyone is out to try and make a dent in the creative landscape. Inspiration is everywhere you look and all a creative person needs is that spark to go to the next level.”
This 90-second spot features a stellar cast of South African artists riffing off each other, and while KFC Streetwise has long been a mainstay of the country’s youth culture, an authentic approach was critical. Ogilvy turned to Coleman whose experience includes fashion and street culture.
Notable South African creators who appear in the commercial film include Kind Kid toymaker Sanele Qwabe, “Nail Pimp” Nailed Ntswembu, the Island Gals skaters, fashion designer Ruberto Scholtz, visual director Rowan Sakarombe, custom car pimper Ofentse Mphatsoe and metal band Botswana Metalheads. The transitions from one innovator to another were important considerations for Coleman. He explained, “You’re really talking about a ripple effect and how one idea sparks another, so I wanted to create seamless uninterrupted progressions that would evoke that feeling of inspiration and flow.”
KFC’s chief marketing officer Grant Macpherson said, “From a brand perspective, I want to work with directors who have a strong, passionate point of view – someone who brings bold... Read More
