US Ad of the Day: Johnnie Walker spotlights women filmmakers ahead of the Oscars
Diageo’s scotch whisky brand plots to break the glass ceiling for female filmmakers this weekend by sewing them a ‘red carpet’ ahead of The Oscars.
Women filmmakers are the star of the show in Johnnie Walker’s Women’s History Month campaign. The work, styled as a ‘red carpet,’ rolls out during the Oscars, which has long ignored women’s contributions to the industry.
‘Fabric of film’ is a 30-second spot developed in partnership with Anomaly that highlights the overlooked and underappreciated achievements of women in cinema. Between different scenes of textiles and fresnel lights, the spot reveals that it took nearly a century for a woman to receive an Academy Award for Best Director (Kathryn Bigelow).
To rectify this injustice, the brand has created its own ‘red carpet’ to honor various female trailblazers in cinema, including Julie Dash, a Black woman who broke racial and gender boundaries with her Sundance award-winning film, Daughters of the Dust; and Ana Lily Amirpour, best known for her self-described “Iranian vampire spaghetti western,“ A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night.
“This Johnnie Walker campaign celebrates the trailblazers in film to create opportunities for future generations of women storytellers,” says Sophie Kelly, senior vice-president of Whiskeys Portfolio in North America at Diageo. “There’s a significant lack of women representation in the screen industries and it’s critical that we uplift women to ensure stories continue to be told by women.”
To get more eyes on women-made films, Johnnie Walker also tapped streaming service Mubi to offer consumers ages 21 and up unlimited, 30-day free subscriptions.
Johnnie Walker says it aims to reach an audience of 250 million through digital, social, and out-of-home placements throughout Hollywood and around the Dolby Theatre. The spot will be shared nationally across all Johnnie Walker-owned social and digital platforms, Hearst brands, Vanity Fair and Spotlight Cinema Networks.
Finally, the brand will sponsor and provide cocktails for the Women in Film event on March 10, the Vanity Fair Oscar’s Party on March 12 and the Whitney event later in the month.
Credits
Agency: Anomaly
Production company: Unreasonable Studios
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