Online dating has been all about controlling who you meet and fall in love with. There’s growing disillusionment about its power to do that. Hinge and creative collective, Birthday, have taken that disillusionment and turned it into a power for Hinge. The campaign highlights the surprises that connection brings in their campaign, It’s Funny We Met on Hinge. The campaign demonstrates how relationships don’t necessarily fit the perfect mould of meeting in person or on a dating app. It makes Hinge that matchmaking hero but also cuts across online dating disillusionment.

The campaign shares the stories of seven real-life couples who unknowingly crossed paths in person, such as overlapping childhood neighbourhoods, mutual connections with family members, and brief interactions at work, but ultimately connected after matching on Hinge. Across seven intimate films, directed by India Sleem of Serial Pictures, the couples reflect on their romantic journey, from initial hesitations about dating apps to the role of intentions and timing that brought them together. Ultimately, they share how an unforeseen “like” on Hinge can lead to a meaningful relationship.

• Claire and Christian from New York City grew up down the street from each other and played in the same Little League network. Claire used to call Christian her “neighbourhood boyfriend,” but they didn’t meet until Christian sent Claire a “like” on Hinge.

• Andrea and Joshua from New York City, discovered that years prior to matching on Hinge, Andrea had come across a photo of Joshua in an ad campaign and said to her friend “damn, I need a man like that.”
• James and Cassia from London crossed paths briefly twice before matching on Hinge: first when he was a videographer at the winery where she worked, and second in the park when he walked  as she was crying about an ex-boyfriend.
• Telly and Kayla from Los Angeles realised after matching on Hinge that they had a mutual connection: Kayla managed Telly’s cousin’s college basketball team — and Telly had been to some of the games.
• Matthew & Gus from London met in-person just a week before matching on Hinge: Matthew was working in the cloakroom of a theater, and Gus was seeing a show.
• Anngel & Jataun from Los Angeles realised after matching on Hinge that while growing up in San Diego, Jataun played football with Anngel’s brother and knew her dad.
• Sarah and James from Los Angeles met on Hinge when James moved to Los Angeles. Before the move, James followed the social account of a niche lit mag where Sarah was the editor.

“Love rarely happens the way we imagine, and that’s what makes each relationship so special. Our marketing focuses on telling honest stories that resonate with today’s daters,” stated Jackie Jantos, chief marketing officer at Hinge. “With It’s Funny We Met on Hinge, we hope to encourage daters to embrace the unexpected and extraordinary ways their own love story could begin.”

“In this campaign, real couples share their own stories of how their paths intertwined—capturing the intricacies of modern romance more relatably than any script could,” explained Corinna Falusi, Founder of Birthday. “’It’s Funny We Met On Hinge’ takes Hinge deeper into authentic storytelling, emphasising that love doesn’t follow a single path. It can come from countless opportunities, whether in person, online, or both. In every story we featured, the couples had crossed paths in real life multiple times, but it was Hinge that finally brought them together.”

The campaign includes ad spots across social media and streaming services in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia, from December 26 to early March 2025. Additionally, creators will share reflections on their own surprising stories of eventually meeting someone special on Hinge starting in January 2025 across social platforms.

Credits 
Client: Hinge 
Creative Agency: Birthday
Founder: Corinna Falusi
Partner: Jamie Standen
Partner: Erik Norin
Creative Directors: Christine Petrowsky &Brennen Cooke
Executive Producer: Margaux Ravis 
Project Manager: Alexandra Szilyagi
Design: Echo Wu
Strategists: James Frazer, Dani Howe & Lisa Cadwallader 
Writer: Martin Baker 
Consulting Advisor: Sherri Chambers 
PR: Gabby Lott
Collaborators: Camille Thompson, David Yousif,  May Jeong & Elyse Marcinkowski 
Production Company: Serial Pictures
Director: India Sleem
Head of Production: JP Colombo 
Executive Producer: Sara Greco 
Producer: Jake Agger
Producer: Magali Sagarra @ The Lift 
Director of Photography: Alexis Zabé 
Social Photography: Eleanor Schmitt 
Casting Company: Haven&kin
Founder: Angie Schoemer
Casting Producers: Kristen Moss, Ruba Audeh, Christina Mayorga 
Editing Company: Cabin Editing Company 
Editors: Matt Schaff, Tom Hohle Assistant Editor: Katie Pehowski 
Head of Production: Lisa Barnable 
Executive Producer: Hope DuHaime 
Producer: Charles Nickles 
VFX & Post-Production: Cabin FX 
Colour: Assembly
Colourist: Maria Carretero
Senior Supervising Producer: Katie Andrews 
Sound Mix: Heard City
Mixer: Phillip Loeb
Executive Producer: Liana Rosenberg 
Music & Sound: Interlude Sounds
Composer & Sound Designer: Taul Katz 
Executive Producer: Daniel Balk 
Producer: Imogen Pring