ENTRY: Video —> Performance & Craft —> Best Writing
Included here: Background + Case Video
Les Mills, a New Zealand fitness brand, aimed to connect with younger audiences worldwide. The goal was to shift the focus from physical fitness to celebrating happiness as the core motivation for exercise. Our launch idea, "Choose Happy," draws inspiration from the happiness and health of New Zealanders. We collaborated with Brett Goldstein, famous for his grumpy character in Ted Lasso, and partnered with Andreas Nilsson to depict his journey from a grueling workout to the happiest place on Earth: New Zealand.
We leaned into the Kiwi-ness of it all—the beauty of the land, the humor of its people, and the energy of each class. Put simply: working out can be fun. By showcasing the complete opposite, we shed light on the negative way that fitness is usually portrayed in the advertising world. The enemy quickly became the way hardcore fitness is typically shown—we called it 'punishment porn.' Dramatic nonsensical monologues. One tiny person in a giant warehouse. Flashbacks with disappointed dads. From clichés found in typical fitness commercials, we extracted phrases and magnified them to the brink of chaos.
We launched the campaign just as the Ted Lasso cast went to the White House to talk about mental health and happiness.
Brett, who flew to New Zealand to shoot the commercial, became our very first Happiness Ambassador. “When I traveled to New Zealand, I saw first-hand why the island nation is one of the world’s happiest countries,” noted Goldstein. As our film launched, we then opened the Ambassadorship to the world.
We received 15,000 entries in just 48 hours. Pubity and Forbes posted the campaign, propelling both the film and Ambassadorship into virality, reaching 10 million impressions.