Stoned Birds and Flying Cats Hang Out in EnBW Ad

With the continuous expansion of renewable energy sources, EnBW is able to supply more and more “green power“ every year. This transition is not only beneficial for nature and people, but also for animals.

With this in mind, Jung von Matt/Neckar created the film, 'Guter Stoff', for German energy company EnBW, to celebrate green energy. The agency chose to take a humorous approach to the project - an angle that is rarely associated to green energy. 

In this funny animation, produced by Sehsucht and directed by Hans-Christoph Schultheiss, three birds enjoy the effects of getting ‘a buzz’ from the green electricity lines they are sitting on. A ‘high’ pigeon hallucinates that a passing squirrel is a cat and the same squirrel, once ‘high’ also, believes himself to be a bird who can fly - a very amusing and enjoyable adventure for all creatures present.

Hans-Christoph Schultheiss, Director and Creative Lead, Sehsucht Hamburg, said: “As using green energy is an important issue to us, we instinctively went for a realistic character design rather than an abstract simplification like angry birds etc. which, in turn, would have lowered the message to that abstract level. We immediately loved the contrast between the birds' lifelike look and the fact that these three fellows not only talk like a bunch of college stoners but also get high on green electricity. We tried to apply this overarching idea to all facets of the production, from animation to the final rendering and everything in between.

We believe this film brings life to the subject of green energy without the moralising undertone that you hear in most commercial concepts, which is ideal for the intended audience.” 

Sehsucht’s animation team respected the animals’ physiology. Apart from the eyes and beaks/muzzle, the animal models were kept as realistic as possible and the animation tried to capture the characteristic habits of each species, whilst also establishing a certain personality. 

The film can be found online, German social media  and cinemas across Germany.