Cannes Contenders: Karim Bartoletti

Burger King The Social Distancing Whopper

The Social Distancing Whopper for BK Italy out of Wunderman Thompson Milan is my first choice. It is relevant, it smiles about the times we have lived, and fits within the irreverent and courageous direction that BK’s advertising has been in globally over the past few years.

Translated Lara

This is a little-big short film, out of AUGE Milan and directed by Koen Mortier for Mercurio Cinematografica, for a brand that is very much part of our everyday life but that we don’t know even exists as part of our every day life. This branded content is so well directed and produced. A nice example of entertainment and good storytelling in the Italian panorama that I really think needs to get recognised more internationally for being the little gem of a marketing piece that it is.

Barilla The Origins of Carbonara

This almost 10-minute film, out of Alkemy Milan and directed by Xavier Mairesse, has as its only drawback the fact that it could have been maybe a couple of minutes shorter, But it is perfect to help Barilla launch its heartfelt purpose during Carbonara Day 2020 (yes, there is a Carbonara Day). When entertainment and relevance manage to fit together, they get more than 15m views. 

You need to know that there are a series stories and legends on how the Carbonara, the most famous pasta sauce recipe in the world, was born. It is said that the Italians created it during the war using the ingredients that the Americans used to eat 'their' food. There is also a huge controversy between the faction of people that say you need to only make Carbonara with 'guanciale' (a different cut of pork which is used like bacon) and another faction that says that you can use whatever you want bacon, guanciale, pancetta... and it turns out ok anyway.

By linking into this, and by casting one of the best Italian actors around (the guy who plays the chef), you get a very tasty and appealing piece of content for one of the most famous pasta brands in the world.

Actionaid #call4margherita

I think advertising hits you harder and opens the doors of engagement and interest when it manages to be relevant for its time, and for the moment in time in which it is released. We had many example of this both in Italy and on a global level when it came to the pandemic, but the #call4margherita campaign for Actionaid, out of FCB Milan, brought attention to a very sad, everyday consequence of the pandemic by using pizza delivery as a media to literally deliver its strong advocacy message on domestic violence to the people.

Averna Open Sicily

Sometimes the great work that you see is about getting an old brand that has not been revamped for years, and has never been targeted to the young crowds, and shaking it up to the point that a whole new brand seems to sprout from it. Averna is a Campari owned brand. It is an Amaro, an after-dinner, herb-based liquor from Sicily (every region has their own… this is Sicilian) that has always been part of the 'old' traditional brands. Then comes the Open Sicily campaign out of Wunderman Thompson Milan, with its Sicilian-sung, super-modern track created by Sizzer, and its amazing editing and visual crafting, and its double directorial combo of Greg Ohrel and Piero Messina (there are not a duo) produced by Mercurio, and we had to stand up and applaud for at least the courage and the love of the craft and the revolution brought to the unbudging brand. I know there are a lot of projects like this in the world but, in Italy, and with a brand this well-known, you get surprised pretty quickly when you see something like this and especially when you see a cool and young and fashion-y version of Sicily.

Heineken's lockdown campaigns

I cannot not mention at least one of the Heineken commercials created and produced in this past 18 months. Publicis Milan is responsible for the commercials that made smile, and salute all Heineken lovers throughout the different revolutions that we went through in the past few months. Nothing sad, everything with a smile. Bars closed; we saw Ode To Bars. Bars re-opened; we saw Back to Bars. Parties at home were allowed; we saw Home Gatherings. Lockdown was about Connections. We are starting to miss bars; we see We'll Meet Again. If relevance and purpose are key factors, I think Heineken has played both cards pretty well in these crazy times.

Coordown The Hiring Chain

Advocacy, not-for-profit and charity work was put on hold for more than a year during the pandemic. There was so much tragedy, sadness, worry and fear regarding Covid-19 on a global level that thinking about asking people for money for any cause, other than pandemic-related causes, was going to be useless. Add to that the fact that, in general, projects that have to do with the employment of people with disabilities is not easy when the concept of employment all over the world is something that a lot of people are worried about in general.

Then, for World Down Syndrome Day, Coordown creates one of the strongest advertising messages of the year by tapping into several of our cultural and personal emotions. The Hiring Chain, created by SMALL NY for Coordown, is based on a very strong insight – a truism of sorts - put into a nursery rhyme-type song by Stabbiolo Music and performed by none else than Sting himself. An insight with a great creative output and an incredibly catchy song, sung by a legend directed by the great Rich Lee and crafted perfectly and appropriately, for the creative at hand, by Indiana Production in Milan.

Positive content to describe an insightful truth regarding the employment of people with disabilities, created with love to allow for a simple fruition of a simple solution to a complicated problem. It all looks simple when you see it, as complicated as it might have been to produce, but that was the point, and isn’t that what nursery rhymes are all about? Better yet, isn’t that is what great ideas are all about?

Timberland Caring Is No Longer Enough

Right in the middle of the first lockdown, when Italy was the first to lockdown completely and the world was to follow, Indiana was asked if it would be able to help on a global campaign for Timberland, promoting its alliance with Earth Day. “Why not?” we said to the agency. So, Indiana partnered with SMALL NY, again, and did a fully remote project that was the first of many we did over the past 14 months. But it was surely the most collaborative and intense of all. No shooting, only stock footage. Agency in NY (working from home); editor in Milan (working from home). VFX titles created by the art director and the offline editor (working from home). All Indiana producers produced from their homes. The voice over person, the little girl that narrates the commercial, was the copywriter’s daughter, stuck at home with her dad. The font of the subtitles was original and was created with by the art director’s daughter, stuck at home with her dad. The music was stock. All of this was done with love and talent, remotely, from home and from all corners of the world.