Nike’s play for the future

When did playing sports become an invitation for anger?

There is a lot implied between the cuts of this ad for Nike Korea. The concentration on young athlete’s faces, the avoidant looks, the attempts to quickly move on, all of it speaks to an athletic experience that is less than ideal. Emotional and evocative, there are only hints of what’s happening as a coach squares up a child’s shoulders during a martial arts lesson, as a swimmer looks up at a coach from under the water. And when the turn comes and the athletes are allowed to enjoy themselves, the emotional shift is palpable. 

A New Day features noted speed skater, Shim Suk-hee, as well as a host of other South Korean stars, such as Faker (eSports), CL (singer), Choi Woo-sik (actor, Cho Hyun-joo (table tennis)  and Shin Yu-bin (skateboarder), the ad ends with levity, brightness, and a vibrant excitement about sport that is not necessarily defined by winning. 

“One must break out of the old world to be born new, I believe that no matter how hard it is to move forward a new chapter for change if someone does not speak out, we will be just stuck in a long-standing vicious cycle of many unfair practices. The fact that more people are gathering voices through the Play New campaign can be seen as the new beginning of a big change,” said Shim Suk-hee.

The piece was directed by Natalie Rae, produced by Object & Animal, and the agency was Weiden+Kennedy Tokyo.