Wieden + Kennedy specializes in oddball characters whose very uncoolness—their out-of-time styles and behaviors—is what makes them cool. The agency perfected this approach for Southern Comfort with the beach guy and then the karate guy. And now, it's created something similar for a very different kind of beverage—Cravendale milk.
W+K London has done plenty of quirky ads for its British dairy client—most notably, 2011's "Cats With Thumbs" campaign. Now, a new 30-second spot introduces us to the Milk Drinker, a mysterious mustachioed character who's never without his cool tall glass of milk.
The ad, shot by Riff Raff directors Canada, broke Saturday during Britain's Got Talent.
The goal is to communicate the premium quality of Cravendale milk and encourage milk drinkers to choose Cravendale as their milk of choice. But the agency admits the character is a departure for the category.
"It's unusual to see a grown man drink milk, so that's why we created The Milk Drinker—a man who's not afraid to make a statement, especially if that statement comes in the form of a long, cold glass of Cravendale," says W+K copywriter Thom Whitaker.
The Milk Drinker is a described in the ad as a "modern-day enigma" and a "connoisseur of the cow." He's also a bit reminiscent of the Dude from The Big Lebowski, another guy known to carry around glasses of white refreshment—though the Dude's preferred drink had more of a kick, of course.
The campaign also includes a giveaway of special milk glasses.
CREDITS
Client: Arla Cravendale
Brand Managers: Vicky Smith, Claire Mackintosh
Project: The Milk Drinker's Milk
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, London
Creative Directors: Larry Seftel, David Day
Copywriter: Thom Whitaker
Art Director: Danielle Noel
Executive Creative Directors: Tony Davidson / Iain Tait
Agency Executive Producer: Danielle Stewart
Group Account Director: Katherine Napier
Account Director: Lucy Crook
Account Manager: Alex Allcott
Head of Planning: Beth Bentley
Planner: Tom Lloyd
TV Producer: Emily Rudge / Helen Whiteley
Production Company: Canada London / Riff Raff
Director: Canada
Executive Producer: Oscar Romagosa, Matthew Fone
Line Producer: Cathy Hood
Director of Photography: Arnaud Potier
Editorial Company: Trim
Editor: Dominic Leung
Post Producer: Jemma Daniel, Harriet Cawley
VFX Company: MPC
VFX Producer: Anandi Peiris
Mix Company: 750mph
Mixer: Sam Ashwell
Music Company: Woodwork Music
Composer: Philip Kay