Aussie expats + former BMF CD team behind Playstation’s new Star Wars spot via BBH NY

Former BMF creative director team Alex Booker and Philip Sicklinger, now working out of BBH NYC are part of the creative team behind Sony Playstation’s latest Star Wars Battlefront spot.

The holiday spot speaks to nostalgia, friendship and the gift of imagination through collaborative play. It features a grown man in the confines of his office, gazing nostalgically at a R2-D2 figurine from his childhood, reflecting on fond memories with his best friend sharing adventures through their love of Star Wars.

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These joyful moments include Lightsaber battles, Halloween as Darth Vader and Yoda, and racing their Star Wars-themed custom bikes. Just as these seem like distant memories of freedom and fantasy, an incredible moment manifests as the building starts to shake and his friend hovers outside his office window in a X-wing fighter, beckoning him to join. Awakening his sense of imagination, the man becomes a hero, inspired to play once again, as he takes a giant leap onto his awaiting ship to join the rebellion squadron into an epic snow-covered Hoth battle scene. Together with his friend, he steps into the role he was destined to play, to live actively and adventure through Star Wars Battlefront.

This spot not only celebrates the cultural significance and impact of Star Wars, but the act of coming together for extraordinary experiences through PS4 console group game play.

BBH New York chief creative officer Ari Weiss says the ad is based on the insight that video games are all about dream fulfillment, allowing us to step into worlds we otherwise could never inhabit and accomplish things we otherwise could never accomplish. Like, say, destroy an AT-AT with our best friends.

Says Weiss: “As the idea came to life the team started pulling from their real life examples to make the narrative as authentic as possible. Director Lance Acord grew up in Northern California making custom Star Wars rigs for his bikes. Creative Marcos Kotlhar grew up in Brazil spending endless hours drawing all the vehicles from the movies. Creative Lucas Bongioanni grew up in Argentina using flashlights as lightsabers. And I’m pretty sure the two Aussies–creatives Philip Sicklinger and Alex Booker–still get matching R2D2 birthday cakes. It just goes to show it doesn’t matter how old you are or what country you grew up in, the desire to immerse yourself in the fiction of Star Wars is universal and undeniable. We simply wanted to tap into that truth and let fans everywhere know that PS4 will let you fulfill your Star Wars fantasies like never before.”

Client: PlayStation, SVP Marketing, Guy Longworth

Colorist: Ferg McCall