Break free chook: It’s an easy-to-grasp idea that McCann Melbourne used superbly in its November campaign for Tigerair Infrequent Flyers Club.

Nothing compares to a chook trying to fly free with Wind Beneath my Wings as its soundtrack, but Venables Bell & Partners have put free range smack in the centre of its idea for Reebok AND managed to avoid creating another sports brand cliché or a sportswear cliché parody ad.

Clearly Reebok is proud of its new campaign, Reebok Free Range: “Today [Jan 12], Reebok challenged the fitness culture status quo with the release of “Free Range” – a captivating video starring a chicken that encourages people to escape a culture that promotes monotonous, uninspiring activities and take on a more engaging approach to physical activity that inspires lifelong commitment.” And rightly so.

The agency even got the timing right. Mid-January is when New Year resolutions tend to become New Year’s broken dreams. Reebok gets to send (and own) the message that the annual watering down of promises to get more active is because people have bought into a fitness culture that is broken and they should trade that in for an “untethered, inspiring health and fitness lifestyle”.

Reebok brand president, Matt O’Toole, stated, “At Reebok we believe you shouldn’t make resolutions for only a year; rather, you should make them for life. This is why we work with partners such as CrossFit, Spartan Race and Les Mills; fitness inspiration that provides the motivation to live out your resolution — motivations like community, versatility and pushing limits. Reebok believes an active life goes beyond physical benefits; it’s about bettering yourself mentally and socially as well. This is a point of view embodied in the brand’s new symbol, the Reebok Delta.”

Yan Martin, vice president of global brand communications at Reebok, added, “Some might wonder why the star of our new film is a chicken. Like our humble chicken, who escapes his coop in search of greener fields, we are encouraging people to break free from conventional fitness resolutions to push themselves and their fitness.”

The social media extension is clever too. Earlier this month, Reebok mined social media channels and identified US consumer’s New Year’s resolution posts that were in line with Reebok’s philosophy. Each of these consumers is being sent a one-of-a-kind t-shirt that features their very own resolutions printed on them.

They will all be sent via egg-carton shaped packs as part of the campaign launch, urging them to #LiveFreeRange and share their experiences online.

Creative credits:

Agency: Venables Bell & Partners

Executive creative directors: Paul Venables & Will McGinness

Creative directors: Tom Scharpf & Erich Pfeifer

Associate creative director: Eric Boyd

Art director: Byron Del Rosario

Copywriters: Meredith Karr & Allan Eakin

Production company: Biscuit Filmworks

Director: Noam Murro

DoP: Simon Duggan

Executive producers: Shawn Lacy & Colleen O’Donnell

Editing: Rock Paper Scissors

VFX: A52