While car brands continue to tout their “state-of-the-art” features, Innocean Australia has found new way to position the Hyundai Tucson as tomorrow’s car. Tomorrow wants its car back is a great statement. The commercial, in which a bunch of robots literally take the car back to the future), concludes with Hyundai’s new brand idea, Imagine That, which was introduced earlier this year in a more classic car commercial.

That commercial mysteriously hinted for the observant at what was to come with glimpses of an unexplained object in a Tucson driver’s blind spot monitor and subtle robot eyes watching from the trees as the couple lock up their car and walk to the house.

The campaign launched in phases across CRM, social and digital to accommodate COVID-induced product supply uncertainty earlier this year across CRM, social and digital, hinting at the campaign idea with subtle glimpses of unexplained robots, glitches in digital display and robot references in CRM communications. The campaign phasing reacts to movements within this supply chain and model availability.

The new commercial’s robots are also seen attempting to get their futuristic car back in social, radio, digital, out-of-home and CRM. In the later stages of the campaign the bots even stalk Hyundai’s own channels and media to threaten would-be owners and reclaim what’s rightfully theirs.

Hyundai Australia chief marketing officer, Kevin Goult, stated, “The all-new Tucson really is tomorrow’s car today, so it was the perfect model to be a proof point for our new brand organising idea, Imagine that. This truly is a flexible, fully integrated campaign designed to work with the requirements of our business this year and represents a step change for Hyundai. This is only the start.”

Innocean Australia executive creative director, Wes Hawes, added, “By working closely with our partners at Hyundai we were able to react to the problems facing the automotive industry and successfully launch a new brand platform using one of their most innovative, futuristic models – the all-new Tucson. The phasing and reactive design of the campaign actually made it all the more impactful, with bots discreetly hidden in multiple channels, before being unleashed to stalk and infiltrate our own advertising and steal the Tucson back.

Credits:

Client: Hyundai
Director of Marketing: Kevin Goult
Senior Marketing Managers: Helen Gilmartin & Nick Cook
Product Marketing Specialist: Lisa Yau

Creative Agency: Innocean Australia
Executive Creative Director: Wes Hawes
Creative Director: Dan O’Connell
Creative Team: Mitchell Sutton & Josh Campbell
Head of Strategy: Karl Bates
Head of CX: Romy Briers
Client Partner: Ian Hartley

Senior Account Director: Vincent Pled 
Account Director: Sarah Gardan 
Director of Integrated Production: Craig Sloane
Integrated Producer: Louis Moore
Senior Integrated Producer: Warrick Nicholson
Finished art/Design: Juliana Bacmaga
Digital Production: Wellcom

Production Companies: Scoundrel & MJZ
Director: Michael Spiccia 
Executive Producers: Adrian Shapiro & Kate Gooden
DOP: Ross Giardina
Casting: Mullinars Casting
Editing: Jack Hutchings @ The Editors           

Post Production: Fin Design & Effects
VFX Supervisor: Justin Bromley 
Head of Visual Effects & Executive Producer: Alastair Stephen 
CG Supervisor: Simon Clarke 
Flame Artist: Alex Patterson 
VFX Producer: Isabelle Howarth 
Colourist: Ben Eagleton

Sound Design & Mix: Squeak E. Clean Studios
Creative Director & Sound Designer: Simon Lister 
Head of Production: Emma Hodge
Music House: Turning Studios
Composer: Elliott Wheeler
Music Producer: Carla de Menezes Ribeiro 

Stills Production: Photoplay
Photographer: Michael Corridore

CGI Tucson Car build & comping of Robots: Cream Electric Art
CGI Robots: Fin Design & Effects
360 HDRI Dome + Environment Backplate: BearStock

Media: Hearts and Science