Agency Nice and Serious launched a spot for Ben & Jerry’s imploring viewers to put aside their difference entitled “One Sweet World.”
The spot focuses on a town called “Coneville” (cute), where a group of lemons are attending a political rally. Behind the podium giving a speech is an angry lemon with a green leaf combover (wonder who that could be in reference to), while a cherry in the crowd holds a sign saying, “We taste sweeter together.”
The poor cherry is roughed up and forced to leave by a group of angry lemons and wanders through town disheartened. He then enters Rosa Park and witnesses two lemons beating up a raspberry. When a lemon sits down on a park bench next to him he’s initially worried, but the lemon offers up an earbud and the good will spreads from there.
The spot tries perhaps a little too hard to deal with real-world politics. Ben & Jerry’s, of course, haven’t shied away from political issues in the past. But the obvious parallels to the 2016 presidential are a bit hard to swallow, particularly in the aftermath of its outcome. In the spot, the forces of hatred and division are defeated in a happy ending. But in the political reality of an impending Trump presidency, the divergence from reality (given its previous parallels) comes across as painful for the types of viewers it was meant to appeal to. Of course, Nice and Serious and Ben & Jerry’s were likely as taken by surprise at the results of the election as most were, but a spot that seems to operate under the assumption of the opposite outcome just doesn’t quite work.
Credits:
Client: Ben & Jerry’s
Agency: Nice and Serious
Creative Director: Tom Tapper
Creative: Christopher Ross-Kellman
Animation Director: Luke Marsh
Producers: Mutsa Marau, Segolene Meheust
Copywriters: Tom Tapper, Gleb Toropov, Christopher Ross-Kellman
2D Design / Concept Art: Luke Marsh
3D Design / Modeling: Guillaume Le Roux
Character Modeling / Animation: Kilogramme
Texture / Render: Thom Haig, Chris Shaw
Storyboard: Marylou Faure
Composer: Ben Cocks
Producer: Max De Lucia / Adelphoi Music
Music House: Adelphoi Music
Sound Design / Mix: Andrew Sherriff