Bruce Lee auditions for future stardom in Sky campaign

Client: Sky

Agency: DDB New Zealand

Market: New Zealand

Campaign scope: A series of three TVCs that use the tagline 'The journey starts here'. The work is an extension of the brand's ongoing 'Come with us' brand campaign. The agency reports that it hopes to continue the series with some native stars.

Press release quote: James Blair, senior business director, DDB NZ: "Sky invites audiences on a journey into their amazing world of content every day. We wanted Kiwis to see how far some of the world's biggest superstars currently appearing on SKY have come on their own journeys."

Comments: The agency credits "our lady in Hollywood", Bedonna Smith, for securing the rights to these clips, and we feel the effort was worth it; the opportunity to see these stars on the cusp of their success is undeniably arresting. The Bruce Lee clip (above) is particularly captivating because of its age, not to mention Lee's youth and obvious charisma. We also like that the agency smartly stays out of the way with an understated treatment that lets the powerful clips work their magic.

Previously: Many brands have tried to co-opt Lee's cultural resonance. Diageo's Johnnie Walker drew criticism for this ad when people rightly pointed out that Lee, who avoided alcohol for most of his life, probably wouldn't have promoted a whisky brand. Schick has taken a completely different approach with a wacky Lee-inspired character, "Smooth Lee".

CREDITS

DDB Regional Creative Director, DDB Asia Pacific: Andy Fackrell
Creative: Andy Fackrell
Senior Business Director: James Blair
Head of TV Production: Judy Thompson
Editor: Mark Trethewey
Producer: Nikita Kearsley
Rights Management: Bedonna Smith / Julie Arie