Toyota NZ celebrates its unbreakable bond with Kiwis in 2021 Hilux campaign via Saatchi & Saatchi
Toyota New Zealand has unveiled its new brand platform for the 2021 Hilux through a multi-channel campaign via Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand, that celebrates the bond between friends, between driver and their Hilux, and between Toyota and New Zealand.
The content was shot on location in Queenstown and directed by Sweetshop’s Damien Shatford, with stills by Ross Brown. The campaign comprises of 20 individual pieces of film and includes TV, social, digital, press, outdoor and a number of site-specific contextual iterations. The media approach was led by Starcom New Zealand.
Says Andrew Davis, general manager of marketing, Toyota New Zealand: “We are excited to present the all new Hilux to New Zealand with this integrated campaign. This is the most technologically advanced truck introduced in New Zealand and by far the best Hilux model we have ever launched. Hilux has always had a strong connection with Kiwis, so it’s great to be able to celebrate that bond through this new campaign and showcase all the different models and drivers that are part of the Hilux New Zealand story.”
Says Steve Cochran, chief creative officer, Saatchi & Saatchi NZ: “Hilux has long been a part of Kiwi culture and this campaign plays to that. I certainly consider myself privileged to have joined Saatchi & Saatchi just in time to work with the team on such a special Kiwi brand on such a significant campaign for my first project. It’s been as fun to make, as we reckon it is to watch.”
The music that underpins the campaign was a bespoke collaboration between local New Zealand music legends Troy Kingi and Tami Neilson, revisiting the classic “Ghost Riders in the Sky”. This marks a continuing connection between Kingi and Hilux, having acted in the previous two Hilux campaigns.
Client: Toyota NZ Ltd
Creative Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi NZ
Media Agency: Starcom
Production company: Sweetshop
Director: Damien Shatford
Executive Producer: Ben Dailey
Executive Producer: Kate Roydhouse
Producer: Tony Whyman
DOP: Ben Seresin
Post / VFX: Stu Bedford
Audio: Franklin Road – Shane Taipari
Music: Ghost Riders in the Sky – Performed by Troy Kingi & Tami Neilson
Photography: Ross Brown – Match
Retouching: Jason King – SixtyFour
38 Comments
Such a clear gulf in creativity between the Auckland and Sydney offices.
That’s the stuff. Was listening to the B-side podcast and they were talking about where all the strong simple ads had gone. Maybe NZ stole them all. Awesome work S&S.
Bugger!
Best Toyota ad I’ve seen since Country Border Security.
S&S Sydney, lift your game.
Don’t Melbourne do the Aussie Toyota work?
It’s an ad only New Zealand could make. The subtlety alone on the ute shots would never get client sign off here. “What do you mean we spend 80% of the ad on closeups of drivers faces and a not seeing the ute in action? And a women driver!” Nice work S&S AKL
That Kluger ad was good. Could have been Melbourne.
Some actually funny dialogue.
NZ leaves Australia in the dust for comedy ads.
A lot to learn from this.
This is so good.
Great stuff. Miss you Shatford.
Great first project Steve. Lovely spot. The dialogue is like talking to you in parts.
Agree. You can’t make this kind of ad in Australia, and it’s not for lack of trying.
Long time since I stopped to watch an ad, but The Unbreakable Bond is a winner – the expressions, dialogue, timing. Everything about it is Nice, Nice, Nice. Thanks S&S
It’s almost as though when the advertising text book was circulated to the antipodes, Australia mistook creativity to mean just clever tactics and didn’t pick up on the all important need for a creative idea first that holds everything together.
That’s the difference between Australia and NZ when it’s comes to advertising.
It’s a sad thing that its still at this level.
…Are just long sleeved shorts”. This is the best ad I’ve seen come out of Australasia in years. Nice bloody work S&S.
THIS IS SHIT! Also, Kiwi’s, laminations are ours!
Nice, nice, nice, nice, nice ad.
One of the best ads I’ve seen
Well done Shatford.
When will Aus remember how to be funny
Lovely spot
I’m loving the little odd-ball bits of dialogue that would never get through most clients and certainly research.
This is good. Really. good.
NZ advertising puts Australia to shame.
This idea is so average, but shot and directed well.
Well done to the production company.
Yeah, it’s such a simple, but well executed ad. The creatives were lazy. It would have been so much stronger if it was a VR based, immersive “”experience””, activated by motion and location based user data, in and around geo-fenced Hilux-usage-occasion-based locations. This would then send an automated status update to a virtual community of ‘Hilux Homies’ offering a shared immersive Hilux experience and allowing the other Homies to rate it. The Hilux Homie with the most experience points, gets a 3D printed statue made of the very land that his Hilux conquered. Now that’s a idea hey.
I wanna go home.
As a kiwi who’s lived in Sydney for a while now this ad sums up the difference in humour between our two countries.
Listen to any morning radio station in Sydney and it’s shouty jocks with obvious gags peppered with slightly naughty oh er innuendos. Contrast that with the drier, less in your face banter between the best kiwi radio hosts on stations like Hauraki and BFM.
The same with stand up comedians from both countries.
There’s a marked difference in what is accepted as humour by both cultures. Not saying for a moment that there haven’t been some brilliantly funny Aussie ads, but most of them come from Melbourne (or Ant Keogh) rather Sydney, with exceptions of course.
This dryness of the dialogue and lack of any obvious punchline would have been a hard sell in Australia, particularly if it went into research. Unfortunately most creatives working in this market wouldn’t even try to write such a dialogue based spot for a car ad, just because it would have a very low chance of ever getting made.
I guess the point is, it’s not a case of NZ putting Australian advertising to shame, more that the default approach of most humorous Australian ads is to appeal to the Australian sense of humour, which is quite different from NZ or England.
Surely ‘Sausage’ for that pot noodle is better. Better production values, better acting, better insight and starting with a better idea to begin with.
Yeah nah.
Perfection. Simple, familiar occasion, creatively boosted with brilliant writing, excellent casting and all showcasing the depth in a product range.
Congrats to all involved. Great idea. Flawless execution.
congratulations all round
Brilliant. This one made me laugh. I can feel that historic Hilux/Hilux Surf look and feel come through from previous campaigns.. e.g. bugger. The dialogue wins it. I don’t think it’s entirely fair to compare the quality of creative between AU and NZ. Whilst we do share similarities, there are cultural differences in society, corporate, clients etc.
Awesome work S&S NZ and brilliant direction and casting by Damian Shatford and Sweetshop!! It’s been a while since I’ve had the ‘wish I’d done that’ feeling. Probs cause I live and work in Sydney haha. Congrats all involved and thanks. Love an excellent TVC.
“Canyonero”
same as above
Excellent work, though judging by the credits, it edited itself!
As an owner of a new 2021 Hilux Cruiser and previously a 2013 SR5 Hilux 4×4, I am truly impressed. The new Toyota Hilux ad is a true winner. Long live the Hilux.