Mid March saw Channel 4 unveil 4Creative’s latest startling TV campaign, called ‘The Outsider’, promoting the 2015 Crabbie’s Grand National Festival
The 60-second animated spot, beautifully produced by Nexus, tells a cartoon fantasy story of ‘The Outsider’ – a unicorn foal with underdeveloped wings and a twisted horn who is shunned for being different but fights with grit and determination to become a magnificent and unique racehorse.
There is also an accompanying behind-the-scenes ‘Making Of’ film hosted on the Channel Racing YouTube Channel.
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The objective of the campaign is to inspire a new generation of horse racing fans by exploring the key traits of a grand national-winning horse: speed, stamina, strength and determination.
Thus Channel 4, which is the official broadcaster of the Crabbie’s The Grand National Meeting which will be held on 9 to 11 April, continues its tactic of celebrating and marketing the race as ‘The Original Extreme Sport’.
This approach has continued through its previous award-winning Grand National promotional trails over recent years (see previous case study).
‘People love the grand national because even the outsider has a chance,’ explains a joint statement from 4Creative heads ohn Allison and Chris Bovill.
‘We wanted to dramatise this whilst at the same time blowing the whistle on all the prejudiced unicorns out there.’
The promo film was commissioned by Channel 4 group marketing manager Ros Godber, the core creative team was Jack Croft and Stacey Bird and was realised by award winning Nexus directors Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes.
The sound work was by Siren and the music composed by Alex Baranowski, while the emotive score was recorded at Abbey Road Studios by a 30-strong orchestra to evoke the horse’s stamina and the race’s grandeur.
Nexus directors Smith and Foulkes said: ‘We were tasked by Channel 4 to inspire a new generation of horse racing fans ahead of this year’s highly anticipated Grand National. In order to capture the nation’s imagination and heart, we tell the story of an unlikely hero’s epic journey, defying the odds to become a champion racehorse.’
John Baker, Managing Director of Aintree Racecourse, adds: ‘The Channel 4 team has once again come up with a thrilling and innovative piece of television that creates a colourful and near epic fantasy to depict and convey the very spirit and essence of what the Crabbie’s Grand National Festival is all about.’
Channel 4 Racing is sponsored by ‘Dubai’ which gets a brnd logo in the promo’s end shot.
Comment
This creative is part ‘Avatar’ and part ‘My Little Pony’ and isn’t the first time that the unicorn has been the central creative device in recent horse racing campaign.
Indeed, the 2014 spot promoting The Dubai World Cup also featured the mythical beast – without the high quality visuals or special effects (see previous case study).
The work follows the property owner’s own Crabbie’s Grand National 2015 ad, released in mid January, which takes a much more traditional (albeit mixed gender jockey led) racing approach to marketing creative.
Indeed, it seems a split is emerging in the world of horse racing activation between those brands wedded to the old-school approach of tradition and heritage and those choosing a distinctly left-field approach to deliberately separate themselves from the tired clichés so long associated with the property.
Channel 4’s Crabbie’s Grand National work – unicorn and all – clearly falls into the category along with Betfair’s eclectic campaign for the Cheltenham Festival (see case study).
While Ascot’s current Royal Meeting ‘Like Nowhere Else’ campaign even uses traditional, old school craft to promote the event’s traditions and history (see case study).
Links
Channel Four Racing Website
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/channel-4-racing/
Channel Four Racing Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/Channel4Racing
Channel Four Racing Twitter
https://twitter.com/channel4racing
Channel Four Racing Google+:
https://plus.google.com/117062369336078228789/posts
Crabbie’s Grand National Website
http://www.thecrabbiesgrandnational.co.uk/
Crabbies Website
http://www.crabbiesgingerbeer.co.uk/
Crabbies YouTube
