Come and meet the people of the Black Forest, a “real,” but not real, place located in some long-forgotten nation in some undiscovered corner of the globe. Explore the festivities of the most important day in their culture: Harvest Day, when bright, juicy Black Forest gummies are harvested from the Gummy Tree in the center of this remote village. The harvest begins at dawn, when the hornblower blows the Juice Horn and the pole men begin to rhythmically shake the ripe gummies from their branches. Elsewhere in town, a young maiden is crowned the Juice Queen while elaborately-dressed bird-scarers pose for a picture, and villagers gather to watch magic tricks and partake in time-honored competitive games - except Alkbrit, who lives in a tree. If you visit during this magic time of year, be sure to give a traditional greeting: “So juicy, ja!”

To emphasize the Black Forest people’s connection to the all-natural Black Forest gummies, natural elements were incorporated in our handmade costume and set design. The goal was to create a place that felt familiar and foreign, taking cues from real cultures but bringing in many completely unique elements like headgear made of bark and crowns made from shrubs. Everything we created was custom, including a fake tree for Alkbrit to live in, a juice horn carved from a single giant piece of wood, all the houses that comprise the village, and poles that can shake the branches of a real tree. Thousands of real gummies were used in the decoration of the set and clothing. All footage was shot in New Zealand on an anamorphic lens to give it a more filmic look that makes the odd subject matter feel elevated - like the strangest National Geographic feature ever made.

The US candy category has traditionally utilized really loud, in-your-face and wacky advertising. In our Black Forest campaign, we sought to stand out by still doing something joyous and worthy of a delicious, all-natural snack, but in a way that was a little more subtle and a little more cinematic than the competition.

Additionally, Haribo is the most recognized name in the gummy category. We couldn’t simply sell gummies - we had to iterate the name “Black Forest” as often and as memorably as possible to differentiate ourselves from other, more recognizable brands.