Immediately following the conclusion of one of the most thrilling World Series finales in baseball history, Nike aired a spot from W+K Portland celebrating the Cubs, baseball and the hopes and dreams of long-suffering franchises everywhere.
The 60-second spot, “Someday,” concluded a weeklong “Make Someday Today” campaign from the brand, decking out Chicago in a series of interactive OOH installments which actually reacted to in-game moments. “Someday” takes a much less flashy approach, instead celebrating a quiet, relatable scene and elevating its importance.
The spot, perfectly set to Willie Nelson‘s “Funny How Time Slips Away,” focuses on a young baseball fan decked out in Cubs gear playing the game by himself in a Chicago park. He imagines a Cubs game, playing all positions and tossing the ball up in the air to pitch to himself. The spot concludes with him touching home after hitting a home run, to an excited cry of “The Cubs win!” from Harry Carray and cheers from the crowd, followed by the tagline, “Goodbye Someday.”
The laid back “Someday” manages to say a lot in its quiet 60 seconds, celebrating not just the triumph of a long-suffering team but the sport and its fans in general. Most baseball fans probably have memories of engaging in an imagined victory, much like the young fan in the spot. Whether or not you’re a fan of the team, it’s hard not to relate to the joy fans who previously could only imagine the Cubs accomplishing what they did last night (or, this morning) on an empty playground field.
Nike is mostly just along for the ride in the spot, its appearances limited to logos on the boy’s shoes and gloves which would be easy to miss. That’s really for the best, avoiding the appearance of the brand co-opting a historic moment, and allowing it to instead celebrate along with fans everywhere.
Credits:
Agency: W+K Portland
North America Creative Directors: Antony Goldstein, Chris Groom, Stuart Brown
Copywriter: Nick Morrissey
Art Director: Jon Kubik
Director of Integrated Production: Matt Hunnicutt
Sr. Integraded Producer: Molly Tait Tanen
Integrated Producer: Mauricio Granado
Digital Producer: Keith Rice
Art Production: Krystle Mortimore
Project Management: Andrea Nelsen
Studio Design Manager: Matt Blum
Studio Designer: Randall Garcia
Strategic Planning: Andy Lindblade, Reid Schilperoort, Zack Kaplan, Tom Suharto
Media/Comms Planning: Danny Sheniak, Reme DeBisschop, Alex Dobson, Emily Graham, Anthony Holton
Account Team: Chris Willingham, Alyssa Ramsey, Hannah Hewitt, Corey Woodson, Tobin Kittoe, Carlyle Williamson
Business Affairs: Dusty Slowik, Brian Cook
Broadcast Traffic: Andrea Sierra, Stephanie Goodell.
Production Company: Somesuch/Anonymous Content
Director: Daniel Wolfe
Executive Producer: Eric Stern (Anonymous Content)
Tim Nash, Sally Campbell (Somesuch)
Line Producer: Natalie Jacobson
Director of Photography: Tom Townend
Production Designer: Andrew Clark
Editorial Company: Joint/ Trim
Editor: Peter Wiedensmith/ Tom Lindsay
Assistant Editor: Kevin Alfoldy / JB Jacobs
Post Producer: Catherine Liu
Executive Post Producer: Leslie Carthy
VFX Company: Joint
2D Artist: Katrina Slicrup, Robert Murdock
EP VFX: Alex Thiesen
VFX Producer: Rebekah Koerbel, Nathanael Horton
Color Company: Joint
Colorist: David Jahns
Color Producer: Rebekah Koerbel, Nathanael Horton
MUSIC
Producer: Sara Fink
Sound Designer: Noah Woodburn
Song: Willie Nelson; “Funny How Time Slips Away”
Music/Sound/Mix Company: Joint
Audio Mixer: Noah Woodburn
Executive Producer: Natalie Huizenga