Fueld's Historic Jarrito Campaign
The iconic Jarritos brand of Mexican soft drinks is expanding into the U.S. with the launch of its first general market campaign developed by Austin ad agency GSD&M. Built around the tagline “We’re Not From Here,” the work features a diverse series of films created by the directing team of Ben Hurst and Dave Thomas (known collectively as Ben/Dave) and produced by Austin-based Fueld Films. View the campaign here: http://www.jarritos.com
“We knew it would take the right director to nail the comedic timing and what we called the ‘inauthentic wink’ throughout the campaign,” says GSD&M Creative Director Jeff Maki. “Enter Ben and Dave. Their reel had exactly what we were looking for. And we soon found out they were also great at plussing concepts and problem solving.”
The directors met early on with the agency creatives, collaborating on script ideas and refining concepts. The centerpiece of the Jarritos campaign would be a branded online TV station called “FUERTE VISION,” featuring several channels of themed content. One channel follows the adventures of an “Urban Luchador,” a fish-out-of-water brand ambassador whose efforts to share bottles of Jarritos often end in mishaps and confusion.
Another channel entitled “Involuntary Taste Test” stars an unusually resourceful taste-test man determined to share the fruity flavors of Jarritos with passers-by, whether they want it or not. Yet another Fuerte Vision channel highlights ingenious ways to open Jarritos bottles when no bottle opener is available. Each piece of the campaign was designed to celebrate the unique “otherness” of the Jarritos brand within the general U.S. marketplace.
“When the GSD&M team laid all the work out for us, we were frankly giddy,” says Director Dave Thomas, who previously worked as an associate creative director at Crispin Porter+Bogusky. “We loved the boldness of the ‘We’re Not From Here’ positioning. And we were challenged and enticed by the scope of deliverables.”
Ben/Dave eventually proposed a treatment that included a variety of formats (with an emphasis on 8mm film) and a smorgasbord of lo-fi stunts, gags, props and effects.
“The idea was to make everything feel oddly cobbled-together and foreign,” explains Director Ben Hurst. “Like some weird piece of film you discover on late-night TV, or on an unlabeled VHS tape from a thrift store.”
Their early collaboration with agency creatives paid off during the challenging 5-day shoot—which happened to take place during one of the hottest weeks ever recorded in Texas.
“With most projects, there is maybe one cool stunt or gag that originally draws us to the job,” says Hurst. “Something we haven’t tried before, or something we’ve always wanted to create. On this shoot, we had several of those elements, every single day.”
“We were in a really great symbiotic groove the entire time,” recalls GSD&M’s Maki. “Some days, it felt like we were sharing the same brain.”
The team managed to shoot 14 different films over the course of the week, along with a range of secondary materials.
“It’s rare these days to hear people say that they wouldn’t change a thing about an entire project they’ve just finished,” says Maki. “But that’s how we feel about our first Jarritos project. And we owe so much of our happiness to Ben/Dave and Fueld Films for bringing the work to life and being an ideal partner along the way.”
Check it out here: http://fueldfilms.wiredrive.com/l/p/?presentation=ec1c88f8e47c2236588a185e219ab67a
Fueld Films was established as a premiere national production company located in Austin, TX, led by executive producer Brady Anderton and head of production Summer Finley. Drawing on the city’s ideal weather and endless range of locations, as well as Austin’s acclaimed creative and filmmaking community, Fueld has produced work for clients such as the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (“What Happens in Vegas” campaign), DISH Network, Nationwide Insurance, Microsoft, Subway and Golfsmith. Fueld Films represents team-directors Ben/Dave, whose “Tough Questions” spot for the “What Happens in Vegas” campaign was shortlisted at the 2011 Cannes Lions festival.
Ben Hurst is an award-winning filmmaking vet composed primarily of water and various other carbon-containing organic molecules. Dave Thomas is an award-winning ad copywriter, most recently working as associate creative director at Crispin Porter+Bogusky where he created work (and the odd Super Bowl spot) for Coke Zero, Microsoft, Burger King and Domino’s Pizza. Like Ben, he is made mostly of water, though many people find he reminds them of Tang. Ben declines to have his fluids taste-tested, citing religious objections.
“We knew it would take the right director to nail the comedic timing and what we called the ‘inauthentic wink’ throughout the campaign,” says GSD&M Creative Director Jeff Maki. “Enter Ben and Dave. Their reel had exactly what we were looking for. And we soon found out they were also great at plussing concepts and problem solving.”
The directors met early on with the agency creatives, collaborating on script ideas and refining concepts. The centerpiece of the Jarritos campaign would be a branded online TV station called “FUERTE VISION,” featuring several channels of themed content. One channel follows the adventures of an “Urban Luchador,” a fish-out-of-water brand ambassador whose efforts to share bottles of Jarritos often end in mishaps and confusion.
Another channel entitled “Involuntary Taste Test” stars an unusually resourceful taste-test man determined to share the fruity flavors of Jarritos with passers-by, whether they want it or not. Yet another Fuerte Vision channel highlights ingenious ways to open Jarritos bottles when no bottle opener is available. Each piece of the campaign was designed to celebrate the unique “otherness” of the Jarritos brand within the general U.S. marketplace.
“When the GSD&M team laid all the work out for us, we were frankly giddy,” says Director Dave Thomas, who previously worked as an associate creative director at Crispin Porter+Bogusky. “We loved the boldness of the ‘We’re Not From Here’ positioning. And we were challenged and enticed by the scope of deliverables.”
Ben/Dave eventually proposed a treatment that included a variety of formats (with an emphasis on 8mm film) and a smorgasbord of lo-fi stunts, gags, props and effects.
“The idea was to make everything feel oddly cobbled-together and foreign,” explains Director Ben Hurst. “Like some weird piece of film you discover on late-night TV, or on an unlabeled VHS tape from a thrift store.”
Their early collaboration with agency creatives paid off during the challenging 5-day shoot—which happened to take place during one of the hottest weeks ever recorded in Texas.
“With most projects, there is maybe one cool stunt or gag that originally draws us to the job,” says Hurst. “Something we haven’t tried before, or something we’ve always wanted to create. On this shoot, we had several of those elements, every single day.”
“We were in a really great symbiotic groove the entire time,” recalls GSD&M’s Maki. “Some days, it felt like we were sharing the same brain.”
The team managed to shoot 14 different films over the course of the week, along with a range of secondary materials.
“It’s rare these days to hear people say that they wouldn’t change a thing about an entire project they’ve just finished,” says Maki. “But that’s how we feel about our first Jarritos project. And we owe so much of our happiness to Ben/Dave and Fueld Films for bringing the work to life and being an ideal partner along the way.”
Check it out here: http://fueldfilms.wiredrive.com/l/p/?presentation=ec1c88f8e47c2236588a185e219ab67a
Fueld Films was established as a premiere national production company located in Austin, TX, led by executive producer Brady Anderton and head of production Summer Finley. Drawing on the city’s ideal weather and endless range of locations, as well as Austin’s acclaimed creative and filmmaking community, Fueld has produced work for clients such as the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (“What Happens in Vegas” campaign), DISH Network, Nationwide Insurance, Microsoft, Subway and Golfsmith. Fueld Films represents team-directors Ben/Dave, whose “Tough Questions” spot for the “What Happens in Vegas” campaign was shortlisted at the 2011 Cannes Lions festival.
Ben Hurst is an award-winning filmmaking vet composed primarily of water and various other carbon-containing organic molecules. Dave Thomas is an award-winning ad copywriter, most recently working as associate creative director at Crispin Porter+Bogusky where he created work (and the odd Super Bowl spot) for Coke Zero, Microsoft, Burger King and Domino’s Pizza. Like Ben, he is made mostly of water, though many people find he reminds them of Tang. Ben declines to have his fluids taste-tested, citing religious objections.
