Campaigns for utility vehicles tend to be blokey. It’s all about the rugged features of the car to go with the rugged worker. BETC’s new campaign for Citroën’s Professional Range, features a utility worker performing a surreal ice ballet in perfect harmony with his Citroën ë-Berlingo.
The idea behind it (apart from bucking the category norm) is that when you have a utility vehicle that’s tailored to your every need, it feels more like a partner than a car.
The campaign, that uses BETC’s characteristic flair for commercials that delight with, returns to the sort of epic comedy Citroën was known, and loved for, for years and
BETC president and chief creative officer, Stephane Xiberras, stated, “Citroen is not a car brand like any other, so why do the same advertising as all the others.”
The film’s signature, Apologies if work is a bit behind schedule, is a small wink at the common misconception that when there are delays on worksites, it’s somehow the workers’ fault. BETC and Citroen offer their most tongue-in-cheek rebuttal – clearly, the workers have been off ice-dancing with their ë-Berlingos.
The film is set to Joe Cocker’s famous, Up Where We Belong, a love-song that captures the feeling between the worker and his car eloquently – and subtly underlines the commercial’s frozen dreamscape setting.
Making the film was no easy feat, with cast, crew and cars travelling to Helsinki Finland in search of masses of ice large and strong enough to bear the weight of the vehicle. The commercial was produced by Zauberberg and directed by Max Malkin, with post-production by Berlin based bEpic.
The campaign supports the launch of Citroen’s new fully electric professional range – the ë-Berlingo, ë-Jumper, and ë-Jumpy – and will be broadcast on TV, digital and social media, both in France and internationally.
Credits:
Client: Citroen
Client Team: Federico Goyret, Fabian Rodriguez, Sylvain Peraldi, Julie Alcaraz
Creative Agency: BETC Paris
Agency Managers: Bertille Toledano, Mehdi Benali, Aude Devaux, William Roselie, Agathe Llorca
Chief Creative Officer: Stephane Xiberras
Creative Director: Nicholas Bakshi
Copywriter: Nicolas Richard
Art Director: Romain Ducos
Creative Resources Coordinator: Kemi Zinsou
Producers: Magalie Dauleu, Aurelia Blatry, David Green
Director: Max Malkin
Production Company: Zauberberg Productions
Post-Production Company: b-Epic Studio
Sound Company: GUM
