The world is going to hell in a hurry. But at least we've got our comfort food, which has sustained us for millennia—all cooked with rich, quality butter.
That's the reassurance offered by Wieden + Kennedy London in its latest visually astonishing spot in the U.K. for Danish butter brand Lurpak. No other campaign in all of advertising will make you feel as hungry as the Lurpak ads do. W+K has been cooking up a whole new kind of food porn for this client in recent years, redefining tabletop with incredibly forceful close-up hero shots of the food (and the process of hammering it into shape) that are as aggressive as they are mouthwatering—backed by rhythmic soundtracks that drive the action forward.
In this new spot, the muscular approach is particularly compelling, as Lurpak isn't just claiming to make your meals a little tastier. It wants nothing less than to help humans through their current tough times—and to feel fulfilled at the dinner table, if nowhere else.
This sweeping historical context is evident from the first frames, as a spark ignites a flame on a stove. (Look, we've discovered fire!) "Mankind wasn't built on just baby leaf salad," says the almost absurdly gruff Rutger Hauer voiceover. "Stomachs full, we marched forward on meals forged with our own two hands." We then see three such meals being prepared—cottage pie, bread and butter pudding, and macaroni and cheese—as primal drum beats mark every slice, smear, grate and stir of the classic comfort dishes.
It's almost an industrial vibe—the prep shots are cold and dark, even foreboding, with every pot and pan and knife and timer built for a purpose, not for show or style. At the end, the warmth seeps into the film as the finished dishes are pulled from a scorching oven. "If we can get through an Ice Age, we can get through this week," Hauer says. "Tomorrow, we're ready for you."
The on-screen tagline is: "Good food deserves Lurpak."
The point is, when it comes to comfort food, you get out what you put in—so don't skimp on the ingredients. And for God's sake don't feel guilty about eating this stuff. "Lurpak has gone against the grain to celebrate the power of the dishes we're so often made to feel bad about," said W+K creative Hollie Newton. "Sod it. It's winter. It's a never-ending recession. We deserve a proper dinner."
The 60-second TV spot, directed by Vince Squibb at Gorgeous, broke on Sunday. The $15 million campaign will also include cinema, print, out-of-home, digital, in-store and experiential ads.
CREDITS
Client: Lurpak, Arla Foods
Director of BSM Brands: Stuart Ibberson
Senior Brand Manager: Jessica Hardcastle
Brand Manager: Samantha Peel
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, London
Creative Directors: Dan Norris, Ray Shaughnessy
Creative: Hollie Newton
Account Director: Emma Simmons
Planner: Theo Izzard-Brown
Agency TV Producer: Lucy Russell
Agency Print Producer: Rebecca Herbert
Media Planning: Carat
In-store and Experiential: BD Network
Digital and Social Media: Outside Line
TV Production Company: Gorgeous
Director: Vince Squibb
Production Director: Sam Levene
Offline Editor: Paul Watts at The Quarry
Postproduction 2-D Artist: Barnsley at The Mill London
Sound Design: Dan Beckwith at Factory Sound Studios
Music: Alex Heffes ℅ Abi Leland at Leland Music
Food Stylist: Kate Giovanni
Print Production Company: Wyatt Clark Jones
Photographer: Rick Guest
Retouching: Stanleys Post