W+K Portland crafted an ode to “Equality” for Nike which is “focused on encouraging people to take the respect and fairness they see on the field and translate it off the field,” according to a press release from the brand.
“Nike’s employees and athletes believe that sport has the unique power to unite people and inspire change – and they believe Nike’s role is to be in the game, to never sit on the sideline,” the release notes.
“Equality” features appearances from athletes LeBron James, Serena Williams, Kevin Durant, Megan Rapinoe, Dalilah Muhammad, Gabby Douglas and Victor Cruzset. It also includes voiceover and an appearance by actor Michael B. Jordan, who we’ll always remember as 16-year-old drug dealer Wallace on The Wire. Jordan appeared in last October’s “Against The Wall” police brutality PSA from Harry Belafonte‘s social justice nonprofit Sankofa.
Beautifully shot in black and white by director Melina Matsoukas and set to an Alicia Keys cover of Sam Cooke‘s classic song “A Change is Gonna Come” from his 1964 album Ain’t That Good News, the spot opens with the question “Is this the land history promised?” and a look at tennis courts, basketball courts and soccer fields. After noting that in such sports athletes are judged solely by their actions, the spot makes the parallel to the larger world outside athletics, where it suggests that such equality should be the ultimate goal, concluding with the tagline, “Equality Has No Boundaries.”
The spot made its debut yesterday ahead of the Grammy’s and has already attracted its share of attention. “Equality” follows Nike’s partnerships with community organizations MENTOR and PeacePlayers International, and according to a press release the brand “will donate $5 million in 2017 to numerous organizations to advance equality in communities across the U.S.”
The campaign also includes a social media component and OOH initiatives across the U.S. and Canada.
Credits:
CLIENT: Nike
PROJECT NAME: Equality
FORMAT: Broadcast + Online
CLIENT CONTACT
Alex Lopez – Senior Director Brand Communication
Juan Reyes – Director Brand Communications
AGENCY: W+K PORTLAND
Creative Director: Chris Groom, Antony Goldstein
Writer: Kervins Chauvet
Art Director: Nate Nowinowski
Integrated Production Director: Matt Hunnicutt
Producer: Julie Gursha
Associate Producer: Emily Knight
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Dusty Slowik
Account Team: Chris Willingham, Alyssa Ramsey, Hannah Hewitt, Patrick Gulliford
Strategic Planning: Nathan Goldberg
Media: Reme DeBisschop, Geoff Scoones, Justin Bradley
Project Manager: Andrea Nelsen
Broadcast Traffic Manager: Andrea Sierra, Tim Bell
Studio Manager: Alicia Kuna
Studio Designer: Seth Shelman
PRODUCTION
Production Company: Prettybird
Director: Melina Matsoukas
Executive Producer: Suzanne Hargove
Line Producer: Jonathan Wang
Director of Photography: Malik Sayeed
EDITORIAL
Editorial Company: Joint Editorial
Editor: Peter Wiedensmith
Assistant Editor: Dylan Sylwester, JB Jacobs, Kevin Alfoldy, Eddie Mikasa, Doug Scott
Post Producer: Jen Milano
Post Executive Producer: Leslie Carthy
COLOR AND VFX
VFX Studio: The Mission
VFX Supervisor: Patrick Ferguson
On Set Supervisor: Gray Marshall
Flame Artist: Michael Vaglient, Susanne Scharping, Ed Black, Adam Flynn
Animation Director: Piotr Karwas
VFX Producer: Diana Cheng
Managing Director: Michael Pardee
MUSIC
Music Supervision: Walker
Executive Producer: Sara Matarazzo
Senior Producer: Abbey Hendrix
Song: A Change is Gonna Come
Written by: Sam Cooke
Performed by: Alicia Keys
Engineer: Ann Mincieli
Music Editor: Judson Crane
VOICEOVER
Voiceover Talent: Michael B. Jordan
MIX
Mix Company: Eleven
Audio Mixer: Jeff Payne
Audio Mix Assistant: Jordan Meltzer
Mix Executive Producer: Melissa Elston
SOUND DESIGN
SD Company: Barking Owl
Sound Designer: Morgan Johnson
Producer: Kelly Bayett
TELECINE
Telecine Company: Company 3
Telecine Producer: Clare Movshon
Colorist: Tom Poole