Rosetta Stone ad highlights importance of discovering new words
Language learning brand Rosetta Stone has revamped itself as a modern brand to combat challenger apps and gamification from the likes of Duolingo.
As part of the ‘There’s a Word for That’ campaign, conceptualized by Duncan Channon, two spots have been rolled out.
The first one, titled ‘The Appointment,’ features a dog at the salon for a haircut. A Filipino voice talent in the background says: “Something so cute you want to binge it” – the word for that in Filipino being ‘Nakakagigil.’
Similarly, the second spot ‘The Turf’ features a street artist who is surrounded by a crowd, when all of a sudden another street artist comes, stealing his thunder. The word for that is ‘Bagong Salta,’ which means a new person in the community.
The spots are directed by RSA Films’ Marie Schuller. Rather than imposing the typography digitally in post-production, the words are painted, printed, stamped and embroidered into the physical set, adding cinematic detail. Agency Duncan Channon also handled the media strategy and buying, which targets active language learners as well as those with a variety of cultural interests.
Kelly McCullough, creative director, Duncan Channon, said: “Everyone knows language learning is a process that takes time and effort, so we made an intentional choice to tell playful stories that focus on the other side of the coin – the joy that comes with even small wins in a new language.
“‘There’s a Word for That’ shows how satisfying it is to strike upon the perfect word or phrase in comedic vignettes that mark a fresh approach for the legacy brand.”
Marie Schuller, director, Ridley Scott’s RSA Films, added: “Duncan Channon asked us to turn these Rosetta Stone concepts into playful and strange movie trailers of foreign films that never happened. From that moment I knew this was going to be a fun project. I pushed for shooting 16mm film for a look that works perfectly with the cinematic feel of our worlds and highlights the charming ingenuity of our films. It is massively rewarding for a director to work with creativity-led agencies like Duncan Channon.”