An absurdly cheesy love story, set to Is This Love by Survivor, holds your attention. You smile. Your heart is being hugged…
…and then you realise, it’s a story about love for a Citroën. Now you laugh and it may be the first car ad in a long time that you remember with feeling.
“We loved the idea of borrowing the codes of cheesy ‘80s and ‘90s romantic flashbacks: the slow looks, the heightened emotions, the slightly over-the-top nostalgia… and pushing them to their most absurd extreme,” stated Julia Heydemann and Maria Espada, creative team at BETC Paris. “Because that’s exactly what a great test drive can feel like: an instant, irrational crush.”
BETC Paris’ idea for the commercial came from the question, “What if the most exciting moment in choosing your next car wasn’t the day you take it home but the very first time you get behind the wheel?”
The narrative builds around a simple insight: you don’t truly know a car until you drive it. In that short drive, everything can change. At a time when drivers are rethinking their mobility needs, Citroën reinforces its commitment to accessibility, comfort and innovation across its renewed range and positions the test drive as the most convincing argument of all.
The message is clear and inviting – come and try it for yourself.
The film, produced by VERY/CONTENT and directed by Ramez Silyan, celebrates the almost sensory dimension of the test drive experience. The dealership becomes more than a retail space: it becomes the starting point of new stories.
Credits:
Client: Citroën
Stellantis Team: Olivier François, Anne-Christelle Guillet, Aline Salaün, Sylvain Peraldi, Manon Jordan, Jamila Harouach
Citroën Team: Xavier Chardon, Aline Germain
Creative Agency: BETC
President & Chief Creative Officer: Stéphane Xiberras
Account Team: Bertille Toledano, Mehdi Benali, Benjamin Merllié, Aude Devaux, Hugo Lesieur, Alexandre Copin
Executive Creative Director:Nicholas Bakshi
Copywriter: Julia Heydemann
Art Director: Maria Espada
Creative Ressources Coordinator: Kemi Zinsou
Creative Producer: Magalie Dauleu
Strategic Planners: Etienne Averseng, Chloé Wren
Production Company: Very Content & Stink
Director: Ramez Silyan
Executive Producer: Morgane Bohn
Line Producer: Bertille Muguet
Director Of Photography: Nicolas Karakatsanis @ Melting Pot Agency
Casting Director: Lesley Beastall Casting
Executive Service Production: Omerta
Executive Producers: Maria Fabro, Vladimiri Grygorash, Nuno Mendes
1st Assistant Director: Fabrice Jeandemange
Production Manager: Sandra Serrao
Production Designer: Carla Brazao
Wardrobe Stylists: Joyce Doret, Raquel Laranjo
Executive Post Producer: Samuel Rouet
Editor: Gwen Ghelid @ Collectiv
Colourist: Florien Martiny @ Keepgrading
Post-Production & Sound: Prose On Pixels (POP)
BETC Music Supervisor S: Adam Ghoubali, Seril Farran
Sound Director: Wilfried Jourdan
