Thinking inside the box

In art, advertising and life, things don’t always have to make sense to be enjoyable and what this curious ad – created by Lisbon agency Partners and directed by PACO through Major West – lacks in logic it makes up for in visual flair. 

It relates the tale of John, who, as his wife explains, is a chap who seems so set in his ways his squareness is represented by his rectangular head – which for some reason is smoking. 

John shops for rectangular objects and designs, can only paint in rectangles and even his dances are square. 

The theme of squareness in general is emphasised by images of things squared that shouldn’t be – such as melons, sticks of candy floss and bicycle wheels. But also, less rationally, toasters, clocks and fish tanks also appear. Largely, one thinks because they look good. 

The message is that to have any hope of tackling climate change we need to see large scale behaviour change – but people are stuck in their ways, thinking very much inside the box. A box of fossil fuel-reliant lifestyles that are fast destroying the planet. 

Ultimately, John proves to be a visionary as he sloughs off his old cuboid ways to embrace solar energy, saving money on his household bills while helping to save the deliciously circular planet.