For its new, wildly impressionistic ad, Adidas Originals turned to two odd-couple musical icons who have always done things their way: Frank Sinatra and Snoop Dogg.
The larger Adidas brand's most recent ad targeted Chinese athletes looking to express their own personal style. But the new "Original Is Never Finished" campaign from Originals global lead agency Johannes Leonardo takes a different tack by focusing on those who have never wavered from their roots.
In addition to Snoop, the spot features pop stars Dev Hynes (aka Blood Orange), Stormzy and Mabel, as well as Los Angeles Lakers small forward Brandon Ingram, former NBA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and more.
It's quite a bit to take in for a spot that channels everything from classic hip-hop to the Italian Renaissance.
"Everything we do for Adidas Originals is a work in progress, as true creativity is never finished," says Alegra O'Hare, vp of global communications for the Originals and Core brands. "We are constantly challenging ourselves and breaking down the boundaries that limit imagination; we hope to inspire all creators to do the same."
Recent Originals campaigns have played on the idea of the past informing the present and future. Last year, the brand called on 10 artists to create visual representations of what the future might look like and produced an influencer-driven campaign best described as "dystopian."
JL creative director Wes Phelan says the agency has spent its three-year partnership with Originals establishing and returning to the brand's history in an effort to remove "the shackles that hold back creativity."
"Each of the scenes are, in a way, a reference to a moment of cultural relevance," he says, describing the "Birth of Venus" scene as "the digital wasteland—a symbol of the pace at which we are going through modern technologies."
This spot marks the launch of a larger campaign that will roll out across all of 2017. JL and Adidas Originals plan to continue revisiting and refreshing the same themes throughout, and Phelan says the current ad is "part of a bigger story we've been building toward."
Regarding the Snoop cameo, Phelan says, "He has stayed true to himself and always adds a touch of Snoop Dogg to everything he touches, which makes him an original. The ultimate point is, I can do anything I need to do."
CREDITS
Cast
Song: Remix of "My Way" by Frank Sinatra recreated by Human
Snoop Dogg in "Doggystyle"
Stormzy in "Trap Syrup"
Mabel in "Tunnel"
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Brandon Ingram in "Raining Basketballs"
Dej Loaf in "Inflated"
Dev Hynes in "Mirrors"
Gonz and Lucas Puig in "Lucas & The Gonz"
Petra Collins in "The Birth of Venus"
Client: Adidas Originals
General Manager: Arthur Hoeld
Global Vice President, Brand Communications: Alegra O'Hare
Global Director of Communications, Brand Marketing: Jenny Pham
Senior Manager Communications: Edi Borrelli
Senior Director, Global Brand Marketing Operations and Creative Shoot Production: John van Tuyll
Shoot and Production Manager: Justin Townsend
Agency: Johannes Leonardo
Chief Creative Officers: Jan Jacobs, Leo Premutico
Creative Director, Partner: Ferdinando Verderi
Creative Directors: Wesley Phelan, Matthew Edwards
Copywriter: Jeph Burton
Art Director: Hunter Hampton
Head of Integrated Production: Dana May
Executive Producer: Maria Perez
Senior Producers (Film): Tina Diep, Stine Moisen
Producer (Online Content): Doug Moffitt
Production Coordinator (Film, Online Content): Alexandra Olivo
Group Account Director: Sam McCallum
Account Director: Dom Dalton
Account Supervisor: Gulru Soylu
Head of Strategy: Mark Aronson
Strategist: Miné Cakmak
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Ann Marie Turbitt
Production Company: RSA Films
Director: Terence Neale
Executive Producers: Jules Daly, Paul Kawasaki
Producer: Rozanne Rocha-Gray
Director of Photography: Alexis Zabe
Production Company: Cape Town Egg Films
Executive Producer: Colin Howard
Producer: Rozanne Rocha-Gray
Editorial: Exile
Lead Editor: Shane Reid
Editors: Jay McConville, Travis Moore
Executive Producers: Sasha Hirschfeld, Carol Lynn Weaver
Head of Production: Melanie Gagliano
Visual Effects: Blacksmith
Visual Effects Supervisor, 2-D Lead: Iwan Zwarts
2-D Compositors: Daniel Morris, Liz Lyons
Rotoscoping: Trace VFX
3-D Lead Artist: Tom Bussell
3-D Artist: Ylli Orana
Executive Producer: Charlotte Arnold
Producer: Megan Sweet
Color: Company 3
Colorist: Tom Poole
Producer: Clare Movshon
Music: "My Way"
Writers: Claude Francois, Jacques Revaux, Gilles Thibaut, Paul Anka
Publisher: BMG
Master: Frank Sinatra, Universal Music Enterprise
Adidas Global Music Manager: Daniel Cross
Music: "Human Remix"
Creative Lead, Music Director: Morgan Visconti
Creative Lead, Sound Design: Michael Jurasits
Executive Producer: James Dean Wells
Composer, Arranger: James Leibow
Sound Design: Q Department
Executive Producer: Zack Rice
Producer: Guin Frehling
Sound Mix: Sonic Union
Sound Engineer: Steve Rosen
Executive Producer: Justine Cortale
Producer: Patrick Sullivan
Videographer (Cape Town): Deon van Zyl
Videographer (Los Angeles): Anton du Preez
Photographers: Hayden Phipps, Cape Town; Dan Regan and Atiba Jefferson, Los Angeles
Editors: Sean Dunn, Misha Spivack