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Long Strange Trips With Lufthansa, BWH Hotels and Roche Bobois
Mannequin Kent will win your heart in our weekly roundup of European creativity
If there’s one thing BETC Paris excels at, it’s packaging the fantasy of … not France exactly, but Frenchness. The agency brings that talent to its latest brand film for furniture maker Roche Bobois, which uses the tagline “French art de vivre.”
That phrase, in so-called “franglais”—mixing English and French—addresses international sensibilities. This campaign went live in France and “many other countries,” per BETC, which tapped Dean Alexander–an American francophile—to direct the work.
There’s a classic setup: two people who meet in an elevator embark on an idyllic journey through picturesque scenes of coupledom, each “floor” of their fantasy decorated with Roche Bobois furniture. We can’t argue with the precision of BETC’s touch; its très artful indeed.
BWH Hotels tapped Nord DDB to promote its Scandinavian destinations by focusing on features that make them unique. These include a sailor mannequin, called Kent, stolen from the Hotel Norra Vättern. “Wherever you and Kent set sail, we hope your journey is as smooth as his lower deck,” the spot concludes, with an on-screen coda: “Return what’s ours. Be rewarded with a free night’s stay.”
A more general ad highlights other weird things that have been stolen from the group’s destinations, coupled with the same reward. We love the naughtiness here, as well as the inspired idea to showcase what makes you special through the crazy stuff people steal.
We keep ourselves from going on journeys for all sorts of reasons. In “All It Takes Is a Yes,” created by an international Serviceplan team for German airline Lufthansa, a woman gets magically zapped to deliciously chaotic, diverse settings after a few taps on her phone, illustrating how easy it can be to get away. Halfway through is a shot of her relaxing on a plane, which we thought was the closer. In fact, we’re just re-establishing the brand identity, snapping us back to reality.
But there’s a twist! After that, she confronts a man she keeps running into. Who’s following who? Who’s dreaming about who? When the ad actually ends, we see them sitting apart—but not far from each other—on a flight to a new destination.
The ad was directed by Niclas Larsson, who drew inspiration from magical realism. We welcome how it doesn’t settle for a simpler story. There are layers here, things to interpret, questions left hanging. Is this supposed to be a romance, or the promise of one? Is this more about the romance of being on your own voyage, and discovering you’re never really alone? All the answers feel like yes.
Angela Natividad is the European markets editor at Muse by Clios. She also writes about gaming and fashion, and whatever else she’s interested in, really. She’s based in Paris and North Italy, so if you’re local, say hi. She might eat all your food.
