I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! Whips Up Some In-Fridge Comedy

From its Fabio ads of yore to last year’s perfume play, I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! has long enjoyed spreading itself across the cultural landscape, spoofing popular preoccupations and tapping into trends of the day.

Its latest campaign slathers the silly humor on thick—so thick!—with sketch-comedy-style spots starring actors dressed as fruits, veggies, eggs and condiments.

Developed with creative agency Ogilvy, digital shop Glow and director Max Sherman, these vignettes take place inside “The Butter Compartment” of a typical fridge. They live on the brand’s “Notflix” channel. Zingers target TV tropes, book clubs, psychotherapy, retirement parties, exercise regimens and public displays of affection.

“Everyone seems to have a streaming service, so the idea of I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter! getting into the mix seemed just insane enough to work,” says Glow creative director Deb Grant. “The brand already owns the idea of being unbelievable, so the concept was a natural fit.”

It’s an unexpected approach, that’s for sure. Is the concept spread too thin? That’s a matter of personal taste. Personally, we like our satire a tad … crisper.

“The brand has consistently shown a willingness to be a little quirky and have fun with itself,” Grant says. “Our audience seems happy to take a wild ride with us, and we’re more than happy to drive.”

“The fact that the actors were able to do so many takes, improvise and be funny on the spot while wearing these ridiculous, heavy costumes was really impressive,” recalls Hesham Aboul-Hassan, North American director of innovations at ICBINB! parent Upfield.

Also in the mix: GIFs, a GIPHY sticker pack and recipes, plus, at some point, goofy takes on Ted Lasso (“Spread Lasso”) and The Matrix (“The Spraytrix”).

The latter refers to ICBINB!’s vegetable oil spray. Whoa!

CREDITS

Cast:
Chantelle Wilson, Broccoli
Neha Kohli, Grapes
Mike Smith, Egg
Julian Bachlow, Potato
Yaw Attuah, Corn
Esther Chung, Red Pepper
Laura Commisso, Butter
Jessalyn Ferguson, Original Tub
Brittany Banks, Spray
James Darch, Vegan Tub
Vincent Salvador, Stick

Brand creative credits:
Brand: Upfield
Brian Orlando, CMO
Hesham Aboul-hassan, Brand Director
Alex Curtis, Brand Manager
Simona Kent, Social and Content Lead
Michael DiMichele, Social Media Coordinator
Marisa Kololyan, Marketing Director

‘The Butter Compartment’ creative credits:
Agency: Ogilvy
Dave Metcalf, Group Creative Director
Chris Turner, Group Creative Director
Geoff Berg, Creative Director
Mark Bruker, Creative Director
Joe Black, Associate Creative Director
Mike Diedrich, Executive Producer
Justin Moreno, Producer
Amy Medellin, Account Director
Madeline Cross, Account Supervisor
Lydia Duran, Assistant Account Executive

Social campaign creative credits:
Agency: GLOW
Deb Grant, Creative Director
Paige Ehlers, Sr. Designer
Chloe Stein, Sr. Motion Designer
Ritch Duncan, Copywriter
Kate Moore, Sr. Integrated Producer
Kevin Kinder, Associate Director, Social & Digital Strategy
Jake Dressman, Editor
Paula Ersly, Strategy Director
Keaton Patti, Copywriter

Production credits:
Company: Anonymous Content
Director, Max Sherman
Managing Director, Eric Stern
Executive Producer, SueEllen Clair
Head of Production, Kerry Haynie
Associate Head of Production, Clark Farrell
US Production Manager, Doug Hoff

Service Production credits:
Company: OPC
Executive Producer, Harland Weiss
Executive Producer, Donovan Boden
Executive Producer, Isil Gilderdale
Producer, Max Brook

Post Production
Corby Dodge, Post Production Producer
Chis Mines, Editor
Chris Wysoglad, VFX Artist