Cadillac speaks to the American people at the Oscars

02 27 2017

Cadillac’s celebrates humanity and moments of personal and collective achievement in a new campaign from Publicis agency Rokkan.

Named Ad of the Day just after it aired at the Oscars, Adweek writes: “‘Carry’ shows the moments of humanity that exist amid the protests, and emphasizes how Americans, despite what they believe or where they come from, have helped each other and carried each other forward throughout the past century, with flashes of military veterans, political movements of the past, and inspirational celebrities like Marilyn Monroe and Muhammad Ali.”

This bold campaign acknowledges the deep divides in America through archival footage of protests from the 1960s civil rights era. Narration begins with a blunt-but-poignant message, “We are a nation divided.”

Almost immediately, Cadillac challenges that idea, with the follow-up question: “That’s what they tell us, right?” From there, the narrative takes on a decidedly more optimistic tone, with footage sourced by STALKR of triumphs both by exceptional individuals and groups of people coming together for a common cause. The narrator continues with, “we carry each other forward, no matter who we are, or what we believe, or where we come from.”

In an interview with the New York Times, Cadillac’s CMO Uwe Ellinghaus elaborated on the message behind the spot, “We can have a point of view without adding fuel to any controversial political debate. We did a lot of soul searching. What has happened to the American dream? We wanted to celebrate what America is capable of.”

The spot premiered online just ahead of its broadcast premiere at the Oscars telecast on Sunday. Watch above.

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