KISS Fresh x Mentos - Corner Shop Drop

Our existing client Bauer Media came to us with a new brief - Their brand KISS Fresh had partnered up with Mentos and wanted to create a short 5 part series of videos to celebrate emerging new music talent in the UK.

As part of their ‘Yes to Fresh’ campaign with a 2.5M investment, they came to us with the idea of Corner Shop Drop (CSD), where 5 x up and coming artists would perform in 5 x different corner shops in the UK. This social-first campaign would be shared on KISS and Mentos’s channels and work alongside their larger campaign which included competition winners and social engagement. They wanted all 5 to be shot between May - August and to go live by the following week. The overall feel needed to sit within the Mentos brand but also appeal to the KISS Fresh audience who are urban, edgy and fresh etc. 

So we reached out to our pool of diverse and talented Directors to see who would fit the bill, one who really stood out was Paul Akinrinlola - British-Nigerian born and raised in East London, he had has carved a lane of his own creating visuals with a sincere appreciation for detail in the branded content and music world. Working with brands like Toyota, Beyond Meat, Levis, and Universal Music. When we bounced ideas it was evident that he had the vision we were looking for, and we’d found our guy.

The corner shop setting already gave us a fresh grass-roots vibe to the series - but we wanted to elevate this into something bold and ownable to Mentos / Kiss Fresh with light pops of brand colour, brave camera moves and intriguing lens choices. 

It was hugely important that we crafted our world and visual devices in a way that felt authentic to the artist and tone of their music.

So it was a balancing act of brand integration / artist personality / music tone / appetite for adventure… all measured out with precision to grab the attention of Gen Z eyes, ears and thumbs. 

Locations :It was important for each artist and corner shop location to have its own unique style that matched the pace and tone of the song the artist would be performing, but for the series to all sit under the same sweet Mentos shaped umbrella. And with each CSD being shot between 2-4 weeks apart, in different locations with different feels, we got Mike Glynn our Location Scout to help source 5 distinctly different shops to work with - each with a unique Green Room (from Princess Rooms, Photography Studios to a local Pub) we liked to pleasantly surprise our clients, give them an awesome base to work from, and make sure they were excited for the next one.

Getting a call in with our Director and the talent was key, not only to build rapport before they arrive on set, but also in understanding the motivation behind the lyrics and how that would best be creatively represented on screen. 

So each film took on a completely different look and feel… from smooth R&B vibes with moody pools of light, to high-key, sun drenched, colour packed sets. We made sure camera techniques and visual devices were also completely unique to each film, in some cases this was a simple prism transition but in others we flew cameras on gimbals down tiny isles alongside programmed lighting changes and backing dancers. A lot of toys and a lot of fun. 

Art Department: A huge part of production was to subtly dress each corner shop in Perfetti van Melle (Mentos parent company) products which included Chupa Chups, Fruitella, Smints etc. Depending on the size of the corner shop this process took around 3hrs to set up with 3 people from Art Department to transform the space. 

Brand Moments: We’re all fans of hidden easter eggs and for this series we wanted to make sure that KISS Fresh, Mentos and our artist had a cheeky spot in each. From the branded ‘Open and Close’ sign on the door, to hidden band posters and worn down stickers in the corner shop, we found creative ways to personalise and add detail to each film.