2019 Winners & Shortlists

THAT CHEATER

BrandIKEA UAE
Product/ServiceIKEA
EntrantMEMAC OGILVY Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
CategoryProduction Design / Art Direction
Idea Creation MEMAC OGILVY Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Production BIG FOOT FILMS Dubai, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Write a short summary of what happens in the film.

To bring our idea to life, our executions needed to portray drama in its most exaggerated form. We recalled the hyperbolic emotion and stupendous over-acting of the 1980s Spanish telenovas or “soap operas,” so we hinged our campaign on replicating these retro Spanish soaps entirely. Each execution played out as a single episode based on seemingly ordinary situations but shot in the dramatic style that mirrored the master scenes of the Spanish soap opera genre. Our cast remained the same throughout each episode, acting as typical soap family characters; the drama queen wife, the reactive husband, the bossy mother-in-law, the teenage daughter and eight-year-old son. Similar to the soaps, our situations were always triggered by one event that resulted in an extreme dramatic outburst. Yet that event could have been completely avoided if our products were in the home; the simple solutions that could have avoided the drama.

Cultural/Context information for the jury

The Spanish soap operas of the 1980s were much-loved by Arab families who would sit together around the television, gripped by every episode, feeling empathy and recognition with the dramas that unfolded every week. They soaps were always dubbed in classical Arabic as even though the language was no longer spoken, it added to the theatrical entertainment and allowed the dialog to be understood and enjoyed across the Arab world. This deeply nostalgic aspect of the Spanish soap operas helped bring our idea to life right away and achieve the overall look and feel we were aiming for.

Tell the jury about the production design/art direction.

Since every detail had to evoke nostalgia our audience could relate to, it was crucial our set design replicated those in the original soaps. To achieve this, we constructed an authentic Spanish home from scratch. The art direction played a major role in bringing the concept to life so all the interiors – from the long staircase down to the smallest prop - were designed to evoke the look and feel of the era. Similarly, the styling of the actors relied on a retro color palette for wardrobe, details such as the wearing of heavy makeup in bed and the teased, stiff hairstyles helped recreate “overdone” 80s glamour. The visual and stark contrast between the first set (the soap opera set) and the second set (the IKEA set) played a major role in channeling our message: “End your family drama with IKEA” loud and clear.

Credits

Name Company Role
Juggi Ramakrishnan Memac Ogilvy Dubai Chief Creative Officer
Youssef Gadallah Memac Ogilvy Dubai Group Creative Director
Juliana Paracencio Memac Ogilvy Dubai Creative Director
Moemen El Siwi Memac Ogilvy Dubai Senior Art Director
Rana Khairy Memac Ogilvy Dubai Senior Copywriter
Stella Parkes Memac Ogilvy Dubai Senior Copywriter
Maya ElKai Memac Ogilvy Dubai Copywriter
Troels Popp Memac Ogilvy Dubai Associate Creative Director
Majken Gram Memac Ogilvy Dubai Associate Creative Director
Tarek Shawki Memac Ogilvy Dubai Business Director
Ami Popat Memac Ogilvy Dubai Senior Account Manager
Maged El Wakeel Memac Ogilvy Senior Account Executive
Luke Morris Memac Ogilvy Dubai Head of Production
Omar Hilal Freelance Director
Begad Omran Freelance Executive Producer
Ahmed Azmi Freelance Executive Producer
Aly Seifelnasr Freelance Producer
Nada Faid Freelance Producer
Farah Serry and Shahd Allam Freelance Assistant Producer
Kim Miquel Freelance Director Of Photography
Ahmed Hafez Freelance Editor
Mohamed Diaa and Mayar Mohsen Freelance Art Directors
Mohamed Osama Freelance Photographer
Dina Nadeem Freelance Wardrobe Stylist
Aroma Aroma Post Production
Sary Hany Freelance Music
Carla Klumpenaar IKEA UAE IKEA Regional General Manager Marketing, Communication and Interior Design
Amer Yaghi IKEA UAE IKEA Regional Communication Manager
Binita Chowdhury IKEA UAE IKEA PR & Communication Specialist