Absolut believes in a more open and connected world. And yet, Gen Zs - who are more connected virtually than ever before - were reporting record levels of loneliness. So Absolut sought to inspire the loneliest generation to look forward to coming out and connecting meaningfully in person, the moment Covid restrictions are lifted.

OUR JOB WAS 2-FOLD:

1. Create a visceral call-to-action launch film (featuring 4 influencers that embody the spirit of Absolut) that encourages GenZ to break out of their lockdown screen obsessions and appreciate a real moment of togetherness #IRL.?

2. Create assets that not only bring out the personal stories of our diverse motley crew of influencers, but celebrate the open-minded ethos the Absolut brand has always stood for. Championing diversity and inclusion and free spirited individuality - even before DEI was an official acronym. ?

These posters ran in over 15 markets across the globe.

Instead of yet another party drink ad, we reframed Absolut as an opportunity to take a break from their virtual lives and meet up meaningfully in the real world. Something that a year of lockdowns has reminded us cannot be replaced by virtual parties or online gatherings.

Working with 4 influencers from diverse backgrounds and geographies (American Actor Tessa Thompson, British Musician MNEK, Taiwanese star Jolin Tsai and e-gamer Ricki Ortiz) we created a visceral call-to-action, encouraging Gen Z to break out of their lockdown screen obsessions and take a breath, a whiff, a step into reality and appreciate a real moment of togetherness #IRL.

To bring out the film’s poignancy, we needed a base track that could string together 4 different virtual worlds seamlessly. While enhancing each scene individually in an emotive way. Efterklang’s Dreams Today had a contemplative tone that felt poetic, while being the glue that fused all 4 stories together.

We wanted an ambient track that paid homage to the natural world, to contrast against the cold virtual worlds. Efterklang’s use of field recordings of the Spitsbergen island environment in the track, helped create this sense of real world vs virtuality. Everything felt visceral and raw - from the opening beats of footsteps on the beach, to the backing layers of water sounds.

Dreams Today also had an otherworldly feel. Which, set against a key moment of the film when the protagonists break out of their virtual worlds - created a feeling that the real world is calling out to them.

To be true to the influencers and their virtual avatars, we had to create 4 spectacularly distinct worlds in virtuality. Yet make sure the 4 worlds somehow work together to tell a coherent story in one launch film.Animation liberated this process allowing us to create worlds in 3D, 2D, Anime and Mixed Media.

We also created a series of backstory films that put a spotlight on each talents' unique stories. From Tessa talking about a more inclusive world, to Ricky fighting trolls as a Transgender street fighter, these stories gave Absolut the opportunity to share some of their counterculture heritage and brand beliefs with Gen Z.

While we don’t have results specifically around the posters, the entire campaign results were more than favourable.

This was one of Absolut’s strongest performing brand campaigns in recent years, with 1.1 billion impressions. Garnering 51 major global coverage hits, which earned 155 million PR impressions. Likeability scores for the campaign were also at a high, with 99% positive and neutral sentiments for the campaign conversation in social, giving it a positivity ratio of as high as 34. In other words, for every negative conversation, we had 34 positive conversations.

The global campaign saw a positive business impact across all markets - with UK seeing a +8% uplift in consideration, and China getting a +231% GMV growth rate for the first campaign week. Resonating specifically among the Gen Zs, the UK market saw a +13% uplift in consumption among the target group and Germany got a +17P uplift in brand perception.