Penny’s is the second Christmas ad to ask “What do you really want for Christmas?”. But while Clemenger BBDO Melbourne’s campaign for Australian department chain, Myer, was filled with singing and humour, Serviceplan Campaign’s campaign for Penny’s supermarket chain in Europe is quiet, thoughtful and sad (allowing Penny’s to become a hero).
Penny’s The Wish has hit the right note in Germany, with more than 5 million views on YouTube since it launched on November 11 and nearly 2 million on Instagram.
A teen asks his mum what she wants for Christmas. After two years of Covid and its lockdowns, what she wants is for him to be able to be a teenager – doing the things that make parents worry and would usually rather their children didn’t go through, sneaking out at night surreptitiously, neglecting school, celebrating wild house parties and having their heart broken.
The three-and-a-half minute spot, directed by Marcus Ibanez and produced by Iconoclast Germany, is running online, in social media and in German cinemas. Its storyline is supported acoustically by a world-famous song, arranged and produced by Supreme. The end of the film is a new version of, Bon Jovi’s It’s My Life is sung by the lead actor, Julius Gause.
The film’s launch was preceded by six pre-release snippets creating curiosity on Penny social media channels from November 4.
Accompanying the film is an online competition in which Penny is offering young people 5,000 adventures – some of the things they have missed during Covid-19 and Penny will be giving away six trainee positions together with a free communal flat share. Adverts for the online competition are running in social media channels including TikTok.
Stefan Magel, REWE Group management board member for German retailing and chief operating officer, Penny, commented, “Young people, especially, have shown the highest level of solidarity during the pandemic and put aside their own interests unconditionally to protect older people from the consequences of the pandemic. It is important to us to show with the Christmas film and the campaign accompanying it that young people have paid a high price for this. On behalf of everyone we would like to thank them for this and give something back. That’s why we have also decided, in addition to the competition, for the first time in the history of Penny, to give away six trainee positions together with communal flatshare places in Hamburg and Berlin as well.”
Christoph Everke, creative managing director of Serviceplan Campaign, stated “During the last two years, much has been said about older people, parents, home office and care, and rightly so – children and young people had no voice. We want to change all that with the mother’s unusual wish, the impressive and sensitive images, the unbelievable acting of the performers and the song which the lead actor sings at the end.”
Marcus Haus, marketing director of PENNY, added, “Penny is close to people and it is a little tradition that in our Christmas campaign we put the focus on a theme that moves people. As a discounter in the neighbourhood, we have experienced in these challenging times at first-hand how difficult the pandemic and its social consequences are, especially for young people.”
Credits:
Agency: Serviceplan Campaign
Creative Managing Director: Christoph Everke
Creative Director: Moritz Dornig
Senior Copywriter & Concept: Alessia Coschignano
Senior Art Director: Rebecca Labiner
Junior Copywriter: Katharina King
Junior Art Director: Elvira Breit
Senior Account Manager: Julia Leibetseder
Neverest & Co Kg Executive Producer: Aisha Blackwell
Director: Marcus Ibanez
Production Company: Iconoclast
Producer: Tim Augustin
DOP: Paul Özgür
Editor: Nikolaus Kohler
Music Research & Negotiation: Kathrin Heinemann & Matthias Bauss @ Spark Marketing
Music Composing: Supreme Music
