2020/2021 Winners & Shortlists

Write a short summary of what happens in the film

In the middle of the desert, chefs holding pizzas prepare their positions. With enough hints that revel who the opposing sides are, we witness Maestro and Dominos Pizza’s saucy war commence. The obviously satirical war escalates as they ride their horses, and cows, while throwing dough, salsa and toppings on one another. Not to mention calling the enemy using the branded names of their pizza’s and insulting one another using their repetitive ‘offers.’ Throughout the battle, chefs use the most powerful culinary weapons they have; pizza ovens, metal peels, pots and boxes. As the violence increases through arm wrestling fights and ear pulling, a man wearing an orange shirt appears, ordering them to stop. Seconds later, panic spreads as they turn their heads to spot the king. With the silent yet powerful arrival of Little Caesar himself, they run into despair.. Because Little Caesars’ Pizza is the #SelfEstablishedPizza.

Cultural / Context information for the jury

Being the most recent addition to the market, one what is already dominated by international brands such as Dominos, Pizza Hut and the local market game-changer Maestro Pizza, the brand was facing issues in withholding any market value or brand name recognition. When it came to consideration or TOM, Little Caesars would rarely make the list. Fighting to build the brand in a heavily dominated market is very difficult, where existing preference are very specific within the society. For Little Caesars, it was either a forced entry or an absolute exist.

Tell the jury about the casting process.

While the casting brief seemed straightforward, the process was tricky. Everyone on the field fighting, needed to have the basic Saudi facial characteristics, meaning that they all needed to be local cast. Putting them in chefs’ attire was also working, but the delivery, passion and ability to project the intended facial and performance expression, was the breaking point for this film. Built on humor, you needed a group of people who matched the visual description, but had extraordinary acting skills. Although humor tends to be directly associated to the script, the actual performance was the integral part of the output, as the script played a minimal role. Everyone had a part, making the selection of each individual, even those in the background, critical to bring the film to life.