Paramount: The Slow Mo Marathon [image]

Credits & Description:

Title: The Slow Mo Marathon
Agency: Droga5 Europe
Brand: Paramount Pictures
Country: United Kingdom
Entrant Company: Droga5 Europe, London
Advertising Agency: Droga5 Europe, London
Production Company: Smuggler, London / Rock Paper Scissors, Los Angeles / Lime Studios, Santa Monica / Electric Theatre Collective, Santa Monica
Chief Creative Officer: David Kolbusz (Droga5)
Executive Creative Director: Rick Dodds (Droga5)
Executive Creative Director: Steve Howell (Droga5)
Senior Creative: Charlene Chandrasekaran (Droga5)
Senior Creative: Dan Morris (Droga5)
Junior Creative: Teddy Souter (Droga5)
Junior Creative: Frazer Price (Droga5)
Head Of Design: Chris Chapman (Droga5)
Senior Designer: Haider Muhdi (Droga5)
Head Of Production: Chris Watling (Droga5)
Producer: Goldie Robbens (Droga5)
Strategist: Farah Dib (Droga5)
Group Account Director: Rebecca Lewis (Droga5)
Chairman Droga5: David Droga (Droga5)
Chief Executive Officer: Bill Scott (Droga5)
Chief Strategy Officer: Dylan Williams (Droga5)
Head Of Client Services: Amy Garrett (Droga5)
Director: Henry Alex Rubin (Smuggler)
Dop: David Devlin (Smuggler)
Producer: Fergus Brown (Smuggler)
Line Producer: Leah Fleischmann (Smuggler)
Editor: Damion Clayton (Rock Paper Scissors)
Assistant Editors: Martin Hseih And Sebastian Zotoff (Rock Paper Scissors)
Managing Diector: Linda Carlson (Rock Paper Scissors)
Executive Producer: Rana Martin (Rock Paper Scissors)
Strategy:
Landing a summer blockbuster is more difficult than ever. While cultural buzz is becoming integral to box office success, with Google search volumes, Youtube views and social mentions a reliable indication of sales, winning back the crowds to cinemas requires creating top of mind awareness – for longer. By monitoring conversations online, we pinpointed the iconic elements of the original Baywatch and built our creative approach on the symbol that bore the strongest social currency – the slow motion run. Using this as our springboard into wider cultural discourse, we leveraged the rise in popularity of competitive running to create a shareable branded experience that would be remembered way past launch.Utilising a combination of the cast, their social platforms, Facebook Live and PR, we created a campaign that generated massive organic reach within our target audiences, all while reinventing a cult classic for modern times.
Synopsis:
In summer 2017, Paramount is launching the first Baywatch movie, based on the same premiss as the popular 90s TV show. We knew that giving a whole new generation of movie fans their first taste of Baywatch and capturing the imagination of those who remember the show with fondness was going to take more than trailers and the cast appearing on chat shows.To make Baywatch the blockbuster of the summer, we wanted to demonstrate that a modern iteration of its seminal features had a relevant role to play in contemporary culture – one that didn’t take itself too seriously. Taking the iconic slow motion running from the original show, extending it beyond the traditional remits of entertainment and into the category of sport, we created a cultural phenomenon that had the power to transcended generations, and in the process, placed Baywatch firmly in the hearts and minds of consumers.
Relevancy:
To launch the new Baywatch Movie we created a live event in downtown LA. A world first; The Baywatch Slow Mo Marathon. A new sporting event created specifically to promote the new movie. The event took the iconic slow mo running from the original TV show and brought it alive with the self-referential humour of the new movie.
Execution:
We created the world’s first slow motion marathon, announcing it two weeks before to 85 million people on Dwayne Johnson’s Instagram.This was a real sporting event. A 0.3 km race, run entirely in slow motion. We closed 6 lanes of traffic in LA for an entire day, staged pre-race warm up sessions and set up rehydration stations for the thousands who came down. The cast of the new movie, including Zac Efron and Alexandra Daddario, hosted the run, with Entertainment Tonight’s Kevin Frazier commentating live on Facebook. The winner was rewarded with a trip to the Miami premiere, to walk the red carpet alongside the cast. The coverage spanned entertainment channels, event listings and sports platforms, turning the Baywatch Slow Mo Marathon into global news. Creating huge cross-category exposure for the new Baywatch movie and spurring thousands of fans to share their own #SlowMoChallenge on social.
Campaign Description:
Over the years, slow motion running has become shorthand for Baywatch. What started as a serious filming technique quickly became the pre-internet equivalent of a meme. This perfectly encapsulates the knowing tone of the new, updated and self-referential Baywatch movie. Today, fitness and competitive running is growing in popularity with marathons now a big part of culture, bringing together people from all walks of life.So we created Baywatch Slow Mo Marathon – a gruelling 0.3km race that had to be run entirely in slow motion. This was a real, live sporting event, complete with commentators, live stream coverage, the shutting down of 6 lanes of traffic in Downtown LA, and Under Armour as official sponsor. The A-list cast were on hand to announce the event on their social channels and host the day; firing the starter's pistol, handing out water and giving 'professional' advice from the sidelines.
Outcome:
The Baywatch Slow Mo Marathon generated nearly $12M in earned media. And in the middle of marathon season, our LA event made headline news in 78 countries, garnering coverage in over 750 publications and outlets. Over 1100 runners completed the slow motion marathon on the day, with a further 74K watching the events unfold on Facebook Live. Our Slow Mo Marathon content after the event garnered over 11million views across platforms. In the days following the event, Baywatch search terms skyrocketed as fans took to social media to share their own slow motion runs, generating 160M earned media impressions across social networks. The event itself started a cultural trend, with over 5,000 using the event hashtag, #SlowMoChallenge, to submit their own slow mo running on social.