McCann Oslo brought back supermarket chain REMA 1000’s “Simple is often better” tagline, created over fiteen years ago, after winning back the account this summer. Now the agency has found a way to illustrate the tagline with an emotional holiday ad entitled “Brothers.”
“Brothers” opens with an old man attempting to write a letter (we later learn to his brother) apologizing and attempting to reconcile their relationship. His granddaughter looks on as he reads her some of his attempts, which all fall flat. Finally the two get in the car and drive out into the snow. They get to his brother’s house and, at a loss for words, he finds a simple greeting does the trick. “Brothers” manages to be emotional and celebrate the holidays without stepping to far into sentimentality and its conclusion offers a nice encapsulation of the brand’s tagline.
“Keeping things simple never went out of style, but in 2015 the meaning of it has changed. It used to describe REMA’s selection and layout concepts, but now it’s about REMA’s promise to simplify people’s everyday lives,” explained McCann Oslo creative directors Stein Simonsen and Torstein Greni. “And, to better highlight the brand’s return to the famous tagline and to McCann Oslo, we chose to wittingly play with this concept for the most anticipated TVC of the year – the Christmas one. We kept all the emotional elements of a Christmas ad, but wanted to give it an up-to-date feel by adding the ‘astuteness’ of a teenager to the mix.”
Credits:
Advertising Agency: McCann Oslo
Creatives: Stein Simonsen and Torstein Greni
Account directors: Linda Kling and Paal Tarjei Aasheim
Project manager: Mette Løland
Illustrator: Karl Bryhn
Music Supervision: Ohlogy
Production company: Fantefilm
Director: Marius Holst
Producer: Hugo Hagemann Føsker