‘She’ May Be the Ad I Won’t Forget: How Gabe Ibáñez's Christmas Commercial Turned the Tides of Traditional Advertising Tropes
Every so often, a commercial comes along that has been made with such a degree of heartfelt care and consideration that you just can’t get it out of your head. You contemplate the meaning behind it, sharing it with others and discussing its effect. This, of course, is exactly the response that brands hope for, but not every kind of emotional exploit in the name of advertising pays off. ‘She, A Christmas Tale, by J&B’, a three and a half minute TVC for the Diageo-owned whiskey brand, certainly does.
'She' is a meaningful modern day allegory which cuts through cultural nuances, resonating with audiences around the world. The short film centres around a grandfather and their grandchild, and as the story unfolds on screen, a tear jerking twist pertaining to a heartwarming gesture of acceptance and solidarity between family members comes to light. Like all art forms, the film is open to interpretation and exploration, a path LBB’s April Summers ventured down when interviewing ALTERED LA’s Gabe Ibanez, the director of this timeless advertisement.
Joining forces with Diageo and El Ruso de Rocky, Gabe was tasked with bringing this sensitive and important story to life. Through this cleverly constructed and meaningful narrative, 'She' dismantles preconceived notions of gender and identity. Released as part of the whiskey brand’s Christmas campaign, the film successfully reintroduced the brand to new audiences, honing in on a subject greatly deserving of wider mainstream exposure.
Gabe, a Spanish-speaking filmmaker, reveals how, despite the distinct lack of dialogue, the commercial has been able to traverse language barriers, resonating with global audiences. Here, he opens up about his personal and professional take on this festive project which will surely go down in advertising history as an instant classic.
LBB> What was the creative brief from Diageo and El Ruso de Rocky? How closely did you work with them on the creative ideation and concept of this spot?
Gabe> Very closely, in fact. On the script level, the only thing I did was reduce the story I received a bit and add a couple of situations that seemed interesting to me, to build the emotional journey of the character. This is an example of one of the rare occasions when a project evokes emotions from the very beginning; in script-form, again during the shoot, and finally with the end result.
In my opinion, when an idea works, it is not the director's job to modify it, but to find the right ingredients to enhance the storytelling. So in this case, I was not focusing on the script but instead I was eager to obtain the best cast in order to realistically recreate the situation in a small Spanish town setting, where the story takes place.
LBB> At three minutes long, this commercial is substantially longer than the usual 30’, 45’ or 60’ spot – how does the running time impact the narrative?
Gabe> The duration was crucial to achieving the emotional impact we were looking for. There is a plot twist at the beginning of the third act and, for it to work, it was necessary to build what seemed like the identity of our protagonist with enough time and emotional charge to make a bigger impact. The duration was not preconceived, the ad simply runs for as long as we thought was necessary, no more, and no less – it is the ideal situation.
LBB> What were J&B hoping to achieve by incorporating a tale of trans identity and acceptance into their Christmas campaign?
Gabe> J&B’s previous campaign introduced the concept of ‘Small Town Pride’ with the objective of visualising ‘sexile’, whereby members of the LGBT+ community are exiled from their rural home towns, escaping to metropolitan cities because they can’t be themselves or create safe environments in their locality. Spain is a place where there is a great acceptance of different sexual identities, but this acceptance is primarily found in the cities, whereas in small towns this freedom can be subject to social complications. Through the ‘Small Town Pride’ spot, El Ruso de Rocky wanted to demonstrate that diverse identities have their place and space in all towns if we embrace acceptance. It was a town-by-town pride celebration.
For this second spot, the idea focuses on the existing reality many young people from the LGBT+ community face when visiting their families or hometowns for Christmas - or any social occasion - where they have to hide or give up their identities in order to fit in or even avoid unwanted confrontations.
LBB> This is a Spanish production and the story unfolding on screen is set in Spain. Culturally speaking, why is it so poignant for a brand - a whiskey brand, no less - like J&B to make this statement with their big end of year Christmas campaign? Why did now feel like the right time to do this?
Gabe> It is a debate that is very present in public opinion at the moment, particularly in Spain, but also among many other countries. J&B decided to take a position built around their ‘Small Town Pride’ value statement to create inclusion and awareness, which is formidable. In my opinion, it is a positioning that brings the brand to younger audiences, as it relates more to celebration and gatherings, moving away from what one may expect from a traditional brand of whiskey with such a long-standing history. Without a doubt, this campaign has rejuvenated the brand and its consumers.
LBB> The plot disrupts preconceived notions of the diversity spectrum. How did stereotypes come into play while setting the narrative and what lasting impression did you hope the commercial would have on viewers with the twist at the end?
Gabe> I think what's most exciting about this script is that at first the viewers think the grandfather puts on makeup in search of their own identity, but then, in a twist, they discover that he does this using his face as a canvas to learn how to do makeup for his granddaughter, as he knows that at every family reunion she has to hide her true identity. For a small-town grandfather to do this for their granddaughter, in a bid to help her unveil her true identity to the rest of the family is an unexpected and very exciting manifestation of love and solidarity. It is also an exciting twist that ties in wonderfully with the narrative underpinnings of Christmas communication.
It is a long road, but normalising the issue in advertising communication, showing stories of love and respect for sexual diversity is one of the steps to normalize and make visible the lives of many people. Hopefully there will be one less brick in the wall of ignorance and intransigence that still exists in many places in relation to people's identities.
LBB> The use of Elvis Costello’s ‘She’ works perfectly as the musical accompaniment to the film, adding another layer of sentimentality to the story as it unfolds. What led you to use this piece of music and why do you think it is such a good fit?
Gabe> I think ‘She’ combines the right elements of beauty, melancholy and emotion for a Christmas piece. At the same time, it is a classic, which gives the narrative a weight that would be difficult to achieve with an original theme song. Of course the lyrics and the title of the song became the name of the campaign and its meaning. It is a theme that, due to its structure and melody, is adaptable to the narrative structure of the piece. In fact, a version was made that musically supports the different narrative moments of the piece, emphasising the twists and moments of emotional tension.
LBB> What has the reaction to the film been?
Gabe> The reaction has been exceptionally emotive. It is surprising how people from so many different backgrounds have been moved, very often to tears, by this spot. The absence of dialogue, and therefore the use of a specific language, has made the spot travel the world with unusual ease.
LBB> What are you most proud of about working on ‘She’?
Gabe> On a personal level, I feel proud to have done a publicity piece that can bolster people’s confidence in their identities, while inspiring others beyond the diversity spectrum to extend acceptance as an act of decency, and overall to have made this story visible in an empathetic light.
On a professional level, I am very satisfied to have made such an emotionally effective piece, such a precise ‘machine’ to make people feel emotionally attached to a situation. Maybe my experience as a director of feature films and series helped me handle the mechanisms of this narrative. A narration with a difficult objective which, thanks to the actors, the photography, the editing, the music and the tools of the cinematographic language, has managed to move a multitude of diverse people across the planet.
LBB> What exciting projects are you currently working on that you can tell us a bit about?
Gabe> I have just finished a fiction miniseries for Netflix called El Silencio (‘Mute’ in English) and I am preparing a personal feature sci-fi film project next. What’s driving me most lately is acknowledging how my experience in advertising improves my work in fiction and how my years in fiction help me approach advertising from a different perspective and I can’t wait to keep on evolving my artform through these mediums.
LBB> How does it feel to be part of the ALTERED.LA team? In what ways does the company operate differently within the General Market?
Gabe> These two questions actually are linked. It feels great, of course, to be a part of the ALTERED.LA team because it operates differently to traditional GM production companies. In fact, a couple of differentiators come to mind. The first is how Marcos Cline, ALTERED.LA’s founder and EP, has advocated for inclusion in many forms throughout the years when it comes to cultural and diverse identities, in the workplace and the content we produce. The second is the personal connection between all of us. Other companies feel automated, whereas ALTERED.LA feels like home. Lastly, and probably most importantly, ALTERED.LA’s ability to elevate human emotion through audiovisual mediums with impeccable execution is definitely the matching point with my scope of work and the company's value proposition. This extends to every director on the roster and the team on the production side. I place a lot of care into the product we deliver, as does ALTERED.LA, so we are lucky to count each other as friends and collaborators.
