If anyone thought that creativity on Tik Tok would remain confined to seconds of silliness by people with “influencer” in their aspirations, they very much underestimated the platform – and creative agencies.
Latest in the new genre, Tik Tok series is Cités, an original idea for Amazon Prime Video France created by its social PR agency, Herezie, Paris.
Cités was written and directed by French author and artist, Abd Al Malik, and all the stages of production (casting, shooting, editing, broadcasting) were made or created for the platform.
Direction:
The series, produced by Quad stories, is composed of 12 episodes of up to 60 seconds (the maximum length of a TikTok), and was shot on an iPhone. The series is also partly post-produced with the platform’s creative tools and filters. The series’ codes are rooted in the application’s trends – its dances, music, street art…
Casting:
Last December, Prime Video launched a challenge on TikTok: #PrimeVideoCasting. In two videos, Abd Al Malik called on the platform’s users to reinterpret a classic from French heritage. After more than 45,000 participants applied and 105 million views were achieved, a dozen actors were selected on TikTok.
Watch the casting films here and here
Broadcast:
The series will run on TikTok, hosted on @primevideofr (Amazon Prime Video France) as well as a dedicated page within the platform. The day before the series’ release on February 25 director, Abd Al Malik, and a selection of actors held a live Q&A, and bonus content, including a making-of and interviews with the cast and crew.
Of course, the story had to draw a crowd. At the heart of the plot is French youth and their relationship to French cultural heritage. It aims to show that there is no disconnection between them. We just have to tell it through the prism of our times.
Here is the synopsis by Abd Al Malik:
In France, in every neighborhood, every village, every city center, there are places that bear the names of prominent figures representing our cultural heritage. Places like Albert Camus Middle School, George Sand Square, Isabelle Eberhardt Library, Aragon Plaza –stages of everyday life, where youth from all walks of life meet up to rap, dance, skateboard, play basketball, football, or simply hang out.
CITÉS is a new genre of series that shows us the trials and tribulations of a group of friends (aged 15 to 25), spread out across France, connected by TikTok who, using the app’s features, bring to life notable quotes from famed authors.
That’s what is being told – with that inventiveness and flamboyance so distinctive of today’s youth. CITÉS is the first series entirely created on TikTok, an online platform and playful tool of communication all at once.
Credits:
Agency: Herezie
Social Brand Manager: Alexandre Andresciani
Social Brand CD: Enzo Annunziata
ECD: Etienne Renaux, Paul Marty
TV Production: Tanya Kozlova & Laureen Rigot
Art Direction: Hugo Doré & Joris Bourquin
Conception: Tom Danguy & Antoine Des Beauvais
Social Media Manager : Douglas Antonio & Lucie Roques
Account Director: Dimitri Boudnikoff
Account Manager: Marine Chenu
Account Executives: Laura Marie & Lisa Duchein
Writer & Director: Abd Al Malik
Production: Prime Video France
Production Executive: Quad Stories
Broadcast: Tiktok
