As a student if you want to break into advertising there’s perhaps no better way than creating a stunning piece of spec work for a brand you admire. That’s what directors Daniel Titz and Dorian Lebherz have done with the video above.
Entitled “Dear Brother”, it’s what the pair would do if given the keys to the Johnnie Walker account. Both are studying at the Film Academy of Baden-Württemberg, which produced “Dear Brother.”
From an interview in Adweek:
Why do spec on such a grand scale?
Dorian Lebherz: We wanted to create an emotional film that tells the story of two brothers that go back to the most important places of their youth. We love to connect emotional storytelling with great cinematic pictures. So we followed the two brothers on the paths of their youth through the Scottish highlands. We tried to integrate the brand. The story itself is based on the message “Keep Walking.”What was the inspiration for the story?
We wanted to create a story that touches the viewer within 90 seconds. I think when something touches you, you keep it in mind. So, one day we had the idea of two brothers visiting the places of their youth for the last time together. The Scottish landscape and the brand felt perfect for this situation.Have you shown it to the brand?
We love the old advertising message “Keep Walking.” It says don’t stop until you reach your goal. It stands for the effort that somebody puts into something, and that is what made the brand big. But Johnnie Walker lately changed their message to “Joy Will Take You Further,” and produced a film with lots of different situations of people climbing or going by hot-air balloon. We think that a visually told story that creates emotions is always stronger than just showing different settings without storytelling. So we haven’t showed it to the client yet. But we are thinking about it.
I can’t help thinking the team at Johnnie Walker must regret dropping “Keep Walking” for the anodyne “Joy Will Take You Further.” The brand’s recent advertising is incredibly bland in comparison to this.
