…And so begins the gripping crime drama of Italian Alpine lager, Menabrea’s, (not quite true, but wow, what a story) history.

The campaign, The best isn’t always best known, was created by indie agency, ARK Agency. The long-form branded content, The Smuggler, forms its heart, produced by ARTCLASS. It imagines a possible story behind the beer’s mysterious, under-the-radar reputation and will run in Everyman cinemas across the country, marking Menabrea’s first foray into short film.

Set against the backdrop of real Italian history, this “…storia completamente inventata,” follows the adventures of a smuggler, La Contrabbandiera, as she roars through the Italian countryside, her contraband, Menabrea beer, safely stowed in her sidecar. Helped by an amusing gaggle of nuns, she evades the law, until a snitch exposes her identity. Captured and incarcerated, with no hope of escape, her (nun) sisters hatch a cunning plan to rescue their fearless protagonist, ensuring Menabrea is, once again, merrily on its way.

The work was developed through an unusually open, collaborative process. Rather than briefing a single fixed idea, ARK invited director, Nalle Sjöblad, and production company, ARTCLASS, to respond to the brand’s “best kept secret” positioning with their own creative interpretation. Working with producer, Craig Dixon, and director of photography Max Smeds, captured on 16mm film – the film was shaped as much by directorial vision as agency strategy.

Eleanor Quigley, senior brand manager, Menabrea, statedm “Not every Italian icon needs to shout about itself. For more than 180 years, Menabrea’s story has been rooted in Biella, a small Alpine town in northern Italy that’s a world away from the Italy most people think they know. We wanted this campaign to have a knowing wink to it, celebrating the joy of discovering something brilliant before everyone else does. ARK and ARTCLASS brought that idea to life beautifully, creating a film that feels less like a beer advert and more like an invitation to uncover one of Italy’s best-kept secrets.”

Xander Hart, creative partner, ARK, added, “Beer advertising has become one long ad. The golden-hour terrace, the interchangeable friends, the perfect pour glistening in the sun, and probably David Beckham somewhere in shot. Menabrea saw that too, so when we set out to make this film for their Everyman sponsorship, we agreed early: it had to behave differently. What followed was a genuinely collaborative process with Nalle Sjöblad and the team at ArtClass. We’re proud of what we’ve made together. A film that pulls Menabrea out of the category clichés and back toward the golden age of beer advertising.”

Nalle Sjöblad, director, ARTCLASS, commented, “Most briefs arrive half-finished; they hand you an answer and ask you to decorate it. This one handed us a feeling, a framework and a line, the best isn’t always the best known and trusted us to go and find the film inside it. That trust is rare, and it’s the whole reason work like this can rise above advertising into something bigger.”

The film’s cinema run will be accompanied by paid social, with further activity to follow.

Credits:

Client: C+C Group
Chief Marketing Officer: Cara Chambers
Senior Brand Manager: Eleanor Quigley

Agency: ARK Agency
Founders: Mat Goff & MIke Wilton
Creative Partners: Edward Usher & Xander Hart
Production Partner: Hannah Needham
Producer: Helen Cliffe

Production: ArtClass Content UK 
Director: Nalle Sjoblad
DOP: Max Smeds 
Executive Producer: Sam Holmes
Producer: Craig Dixon
Head of New Business: Emma Horgan
Production: Production Industria
Executive Producer: Sandro Gabilaia 
Head of Production: Maia Gurabanidze
Producer: Sopo Parjiani 
Bidding Producers: Tekle Darchiashvili & Tatusha Arveladze
Line producer: Ninutsa Chikhladze
1st AD: Gvantsa Jujunashvili
Production Manager: Guram Mosikashvili
Production Coordinator: Marishka Tsiklauri

Offline Edit: The Quarry
Editor: Jonnie Scarlett
Edit Assist: Henry Thackray
Producer: Dilia Knobel

Post Production: Electric Theatre Collective
2D Lead: Tyler Yoshikawa
Colourist: Connor Coolbearr
Executive Producer: Oscar Wendt

Sound Studio: Run-amok
Sound Engineer: Jon Clarke
Executive Producer: Caroline Jemirifo