Banana Republic's Madcap Microseries Presents a Travel Agency Living in the Past

Jack Innanen plays 4 roles—and he carries a knife

Gap Inc.’s Banana Republic takes a trip back in time with a micro-mockumentary series chronicling a travel agency where staffers rely on analog tech to get the job done.

Is it faxtastic? Let’s just say an amusing improv vibe drives the first two installments, stoking nostalgia that should resonate with a range of viewers—especially those who inhabited the Clinton years (or wish they had).

Comedian Jack Innanen (from Adults) shines in multiple roles, including the every-bro office manager, a lothario who sells cruise packages and the “adventure desk” guy brandishing a Crocodile Dundee-style hunting knife.

When a corporate drone (Taylor Ortega) arrives to modernize “The Agency,” everyone’s thrown into a tailspin. The second of five episodes, each running about 2 minutes, dropped today across social:

COPE Global and production studio Grand Nature developed the project. (They previously partnered on “The Scene,” a Marc Jacobs microseries starring Rachel Sennott. Writer/director Jeffrey Scotti Schroder and veteran cinematographer Sean Price Williams (famed for his handheld camera style) also contributed.

The team developed several ideas as a springboard based on Banana Republic’s desire to focus on “adventure.” One of these “was ‘The Last Travel Agency in NYC,'” Grand Nature CCO and executive producer Brianna Sedor tells Muse. “Travel agencies, to us, felt like a funny take on the concept of adventure. And the idea of analog being forced to modernize felt like a particularly relevant storyline given where we’re at in the world today.”

Of course, short brand series are having a moment, so “The Agency” represents a chance for the retailer to flex across a trending format.

“Across the board, audiences are viewing content and advertisements in less traditional ways, but especially younger people,” Sedor says. “They want more from their targeted content—which they should! Banana Republic was looking for a fresh approach to share the brand with the social-first generation in a way that resonates. This micro-series does just that.”

“The work we put into the writing of this was in service to those watching it and I think it shows. Putting TV-level writing into targeted content is so worth it. We want this to be enjoyable for everyone.”

But, why cast Innanen in multiple roles?

“Jack’s original claim to fame is on TikTok having conversations with himself as different characters,” she says. “He already plays multiple roles in his videos, and we wanted to capitalize on what he does best. Also, he is just the most charming and kindest person ever. He is amazing in Adults and Big Mistakes, so hiring him as an actor was a no brainer. It was a huge bonus when we realized he can play mockumentary as good as anyone on The Office.”

What’s more, a BTS element will come into play, with real crew members—Sedor included—appearing on camera.

“Everyone played heightened, or let’s call it satirical, versions of themselves,” she says. “It adds a lot of great assets for people to watch. Even though they’ve finished the series, there’s more content surrounding the show that they can keep binging. And even better, this is real BTS, which you don’t get that often with ads or content in general.”

CREDITS

Agency: COPE Global
Partner/ECDs: Adam Bracegirdle-Black, Tim Barnett
General Manager: Jim Nuttall
Creative Director: Ray Okudzeto
Executive Producer: Harvey Ascott
Producer: Xuxa Foti

Production Company: Grand Nature
Writer/Director: Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder
Writer/Executive Producer: Brianna Sedor
Executive Producer: Chris Abitbol
Managing Director: Max Fisher
Producers: Trevor Martin, Andres Carrillo

DP: Sean Price Williams
1st AC: Danny Flanagan
2nd ACs: Yasmeen Jawhar, Mia Tsuchida
2nd Unit DP: Bradley Virshup
B Cam 1st AC: Evan Werner
B Cam 2nd AC: Jorge Iglesias
VTR Operator: Javed S. Ali
DIT: James Jacob

Production Designer: Izabelle Garcia
Art Director: Grace Beck

Post Production: Avenues
Editor: Fin Melluish
Trailer Editor: Matthew Dilworth
Color: John Layton
Post Producer: Amanda Jenkins
BTS Editor: Carina Etae
VFX: Lukas Kunzmann
GFX: Guillaume Maurin-Belay
Sound: Natural Frequencies

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