Optus launches new TV commercial directed by Hollywood actor Cuba Gooding Jr via Emotive
Optus has launched its new commercial directed by Cuba Gooding Jr via Emotive, which stars Aussie actors selected by the Oscar-winning actor.
In the commercial, Gooding Jr is seen in the director’s chair instructing the actors to look at an empty podium, “imagine” the newest mobile device available from Optus and show him what it makes them “feel”. The actors then show Gooding Jr their honest and unscripted reactions while visualising the very latest mobile phone.
Says Melissa Hopkins, head of marketing, Optus: “Optus is really excited to launch the very latest mobile device accompanied by an innovative and clever commercial which features the amazing Cuba Gooding Jr in the Director’s chair and some superb Aussie actors.”
In August, Gooding Jr put a call out to Australian actors to audition for an Optus commercial and was inundated with videos from up-and-coming actors wanting to show off their talents to the budding Hollywood director.
Thirty people, selected from everyday Aussies who had submitted videos and some trained actors, were chosen to audition, with the process filmed in a reality-television style from beginning to end. The actors had no idea the audition would turn out to be the commercial, and so their reactions were genuine, unfiltered and captured in one take.
Says Hopkins: “At Optus, we like to challenge the status quo and with this commercial we did that. We placed up-and-coming Aussie actors in front of a Hollywood director to capture their genuine reactions in an unscripted and spontaneous reality-television style commercial, which is a really innovative concept for a marketing campaign.
“The finished commercial is a combination of CCTV footage and audition tape, because we knew that a phone this good didn’t need a big scripted ad. We love working with Cuba because he always brings spontaneity and creativity to the set, and he absolutely did that in the role of director for this shoot.”
Optus: Melissa Hopkins, Michael Sinclair, Franz Siasat
Creative & Production: Emotive
CEO/Strategy Lead – Simon Joyce
Business Directors – Alison Mitchell and Aimee Stewart
Creative Director/Director – Zane Pearson
Senior Creative – Rory Pearson
Additional Creative – Gary Eck
Senior Producer – Alistair Pratten
Director of Photography – Simon Ozolins
Product Photography – Viv Scanu
Art Director – Miles Pitt
Editor – Uthayan Selvaraj
Sound Design and Composition – Chocolate Studios
22 Comments
that was so awkward and lame to watch I had to turn it off
Stop stealing my ads
Even Yes Agency could have done slightly better than this crap.
this is the only time an agency team didn’t want any credit on a press release
You did not get approval to run this. My lawyers will be in contact.
well it’s got Cuba Gooding Jr. in it, I’ll say that for it.
Does the Optus CMO still have a job? The brand is a fooking shambles.
This sucks.
OPTUS & EMOTIVE: We’ve got a product.
We’ve got money.
We’ve got a celebrity.
We’ve got a marketing team that thinks they’re creative.
Are we missing anything?
INDUSTRY: An idea?
OPTUS & EMOTIVE: Nope. Let’s go.
Fallen a long way from that first Gervais idea (cough, not their idea)
Not sure how emotive keep Optus?
Ah yes, the client also has quality issues!
Lot of axes to grind out there. Spots are a bit all over the place but the idea lands cleanly and the conceit grabs attention. Optus could – and have – done a lot worse.
Sorry ‘No’, but I believe it’s been a very long time since “ideas” were our business.
Particularly in Sydney.
And certainly based on the tone and nature of these comments.
The press release is almost as painful as the 35 seconds I could endure of the ad
Better than the Telstra magic ad I guess
No CCTV footage in sight but plenty of crafted, multi-range shots of Cuba, did these unsuspecting auditionees come down in the same shower of sh*t as this idea?!
It’s not good content. Not engaging.
And
It’s not good advertising (not branded well and no voherent take out.
Vomit + Coherent?
I think everyone commenting must work in the stabby-agency-village of Optus. You know, the 17 agencies they have rostered for this.
I’m no expert, but I do understand you can’t pull off a Ricky Gervais, Jason Donavon or a Doug Pitt every time.
However:
Made me laugh
Hooked me in
It’s actually entertaining, even though I recognise every actor.
And the main bit – it sells the benefit at the end. It’s all about the network and not about the phone.
And having had to do iPhone for Virgin and Telstra, I think they got away with a heck of a lot more than Apple normally let you do.
So well done guys. I understand it isn’t the best ad in the world, but I do think we should praise wherever the bar is being raised ever-so-slightly instead of being snide fuckpanties and dissing anything half decent.
Good show.
The original is way better
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZDoYz773r4
It’s still worlds better than the magic thrive drivel coming out of Telstra.
Is this an ad for an Apple iPhone or Optus? Because all I’m hearing (not seeing, ROFL) is iPhone.
Emotive are, unfortunately, a cancer that grows when a client wants an idea, has absolutely no idea what that looks like and insists that getting it for peanuts and in a few days. Emotive happily produce work of poor standard in record time, usually with a celebrity instead of an idea. And Optus are now ‘that brand with Usain Bolt’ instead of having a meaningful story. Seventeen agencies, all hating on each other and backstabbing over the scraps of budget doesn’t lead to good work. Optus is a case study in what not to do. The sooner Emotive are exposed for what they are and the damage they’re doing the better.