I was interested to see that Nissan have made a short film, rather than a commercial, to advertise their Micra in India.
Nissan announced their plans last October and launched a huge Facebook campaign asking aspiring contestants to upload a short video clip of themselves dancing signature Bollywood moves. Twenty lucky winners were then flown to Ramoji Film City to take part in shooting for the film which involved over six hundred people, one hundred Nissan Micras, Nissan’s brand ambassador and Bollywood star Ranbir Kapoor, and Choreographer/Director Ahmed Khan.
The finished article was released on Facebook and online in India with a 60 second trailer released in cinemas.
Now I know I’m not the target audience and my knowledge of the Bollywood movie genre isn’t very extensive, but having watched the piece, I have to say that it feels much more like a long commercial than a short film. I do take my hat off to Nissan for trying something new but I’m not sure how successful their effort has been.
Is this me being horribly mean-spirited, or is it an example of the need for brands to collaborate with writers with relevant film rather than advertising experience when they decide to step outside the traditional 30-60 second commercial format?
Have a look and see if you agree with me:
