A Week in Creative: the great Trump unfollowing and a letter to Zion
This is an extract from The Drum’s A Week in Creative email briefing. You can subscribe to it here if you’d like it in your inbox once a week.
Welcome to ’A Week in Creative’, a handpicked selection of the most interesting campaigns to come out of The Drum’s Creative Works in the past week. If this list doesn’t quench your creative thirst, then please visit the ’A Week in Creative’ hub.
A letter to Zion
Last month, the founder of 56 Black Men, Cephas Williams, made public a moving letter he had penned to his son Zion, who was born in the midst of the George Floyd protests. The Letter was written as a vehicle to bring about continuous dialogue and tangible change regarding the Black community and wider landscape.
In the letter, Williams pledged to: “Build an alliance in the UK, an alliance of Black people and our non-Black allies, everyone who is brave enough and forward-thinking enough to stand with us, shoulder to shoulder to help create the change we need to see.“
With the support of the out-of-home industry, Williams and the Black British Network have profiled the letter on a massive scale for the world to read. Led, planned and coordinated by Talon, the campaign will run in November and December, and into 2021 across sites donated by Blow Up Media, Clear Channel Outdoor, JCDecaux, Ocean Outdoor, Open Media, Maxx Media and Smart Outdoor.
Unfollowing the ‘leader’
As independent London creatives, Creature wasted no time in sticking the knife into Donald Trump after he lost the presidential elections to Democrat Joe Biden.
Considering his infamous activity online, Creature encouraged Twitter users to disarm Trump simply by unfollowing him. Billed as ‘The Great Unfollow‘ it pulled no punches, depicting an irate Trump pulling a tantrum in a nappy alongside the headline ‘Twitter‘s biggest Loser‘.
The magic of Christmas
Telling the story of a grandmother, her granddaughter and the family traditions that connect them through the years, Disney charming Christmas campaign is inspired by the themes of togetherness in a year that has upended it.
The story centres around Lola’s much-loved Mickey Mouse toy, which we see being gifted to her as a young child by her father in 1940. With each passing year, Mickey comes to symbolise Lola’s childhood and a present-day connection to her granddaughter, ultimately inspiring a festive surprise on Christmas morning.
Reynolds v Jackman
Hollywood 'frenemies' Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds are at it again with the pair taking to social media to set out the terms of the latest tussle in a game of oneupmanship that has raged since 2009 when they teamed up for X-Men Origins: Wolverine.
Lighthearted competition between the two soon spilt onto social media where each has taken turns to outdo the other with faux takedown ads, pretend bickering and a, probably real, desire to come out on top.
However, this time around Reynolds-owned Aviation Gin and Jackman's Laughing Man Coffee brand are joining forces with Walmart-owned Sam’s Club to invite donations to the Sick Kids Foundation and Laughing Man Foundation.
TikTok pushes education
Since emerging back in 2016, TikTok has faced criticism for the inappropriate short-form videos that make their way onto the screens of minors. In a bid to combat this, TikTok has begun framing itself as a home of educational content. Starting in June, it launched ’#LearnonTikTok’, which saw the platform invest €13m Europe-wide to collaborate with public figures, media publishers, and educational content to help users learn real-world skills in-app.
To ensure this push into the educational space doesn't go unnoticed, the short-form video app has unveiled its first-ever brand campaign, dedicated solely to educational content.
Voiced by beloved polymath Stephen Fry, the ’A-Z of TikTok’ features user-generated content from creators like ’Take on Gravity’ who explores the physics behind aeronautics, and Florian Gadsby, who offers tips and tricks for moulding the perfect pottery.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, so if this dose of creativity leaves you thirsty for more, please drop in at The Drum’s Creative Works – the home of creative from all around the globe. You can also subscribe to The Drum’s creative newsletter or browse our round-up here.