100 days after the elections, Leffe decided to create the longest terrace ever in the hope of uniting the two communities and bringing them back together. The beer brand placed 1000 tables along the 400 km language border and invited 1000 Flemish and 1000 French speakers to share a beer. Participants were also asked to discuss ten political questions set by a Professor and political scientist and reach (at least) 1000 compromises. To set an example for the national politicians, they should create a new government as soon as possible.
 

 
Leffe wanted to send them a strong signal and avoid beating that world record again as a Belgian beer brand. And nothing like a good Leffe to start a discussion on a topic such as politics. Even more accurate, around a table on a terrace this summer.

So, it’s time for a good conversation. And there is no better way to discuss in-depth than with a nice Leffe on a terrace – The National Debate

The objective was to stimulate the debate. This campaign was a real success and generated lots of reactions, participation, PR mentions in major national and international media, such as The Wall Street Journal, Euronews, ZDF… but also an impressive sales rise! And the least we can say is that Leffe and BBDO Belgium have succeeded!

Credits
Advertising Campaign: The National Debate
Client: Leffe – AB InBev
Advertising Agency: BBDO Belgium
Category: Alcoholic Drinks
Medium: Experiential marketing

The stakes in this election are high. Maybe higher than ever. And with just one month to go until the most important elections in the history of the European Union, the European Parliament is launching a campaign in all member states to encourage people across the EU to vote.

& Co, the Copenhagen based agency behind the creative development, is a sub-contractor of European Broadcast Partners, with whom the European Parliament has a framework contract. Previous work from & Co. like TV 2’s “All That We Share” struck a chord with the EBP, and the campaign & Co. developed for the elections is no less spectacular.

The campaign is a message of hope in an increasingly uncertain world. Today’s challenges can’t be solved individually or even on a national level, but if Europe stands together it’s possible to lead the way. And the more people vote, the stronger European democracy becomes.

Newborns
The campaign is orchestrated around a 3-minute hero-film for digital and social media. In the film, director Frédéric Planchon documents the intense beauty of new Europeans coming into this world. Planchon is known for numerous global, award-winning campaigns through the last decades, but even with all his experience, this project was very different.

“We witness the nervous last hours of pregnancies, going into labor, and finally the actual birth of these children that will inherit our decisions in the upcoming elections. We see the love and hope that meets the newborns”, says Frédéric Planchon. “All the people who participated and let us into their lives at these crucial moments were absolutely fantastic. It’s been an honor and a privilege to make this film.”

The birth of the idea
But how do you go from being briefed on increasing voter engagement to documenting real-life births across Europe?

“The biggest act of hope and will to believe in a better future is putting a child into this world”, says Johan Køhler, Partner and Copywriter at & Co. “And this is not a political campaign. It’s not about who and what to vote for. It’s about why we vote and, in my mind, we vote because we have to deal with the challenges we face globally, unless we want to leave the coming generations worse off.”

“The parliament saw the potential in the idea from the very beginning. The ambition was to document reality, so we couldn’t promise what exact scenes we would bring home. That’s a brave decision, and Frédéric was stand-by, waiting for births to film over a period of 15 days to get the material just right”, says Rune Petersen, Partner and Art Director at & Co.

“We can’t think of anything more important than to unite Europe right now. It’s been a pleasure and a dream to work with the parliament”, says Trine Aagaard Eisinger, Partner & Client Service Director at & Co. “They have been brave and agile in their decision-making, and we are so immensely proud to have worked together on this campaign.”

500 million Europeans
The goal of the campaign is ambitious: reach 500 million Europeans. And that’s why distribution is such a big part of the creative idea.

“With a limited budget, and a target audience of 500 million people, we had to tailor a distribution strategy that combines TV, cinema, print, PR, social media and The European Parliament’s thousands of volunteers and partners, to create maximum engagement and awareness around the message”, says Emil Towity, media strategist at & Co.
“And both the distribution strategy and the campaign itself is essentially about making Europeans stand together.”

“Democracy should unite us. But in the heat of the battle, politics often divide us. We tend to forget all the things we agree on”, says Johan Køhler, Partner and Copywriter at & Co. “Once in a while, we need to rediscover that we share our human circumstances and a lot of our dreams for our own and our children’s future. Or as the voice-over in the film explains: “From the second, we come into this world, we’re in it together”.

Credits

CLIENT:
The European-Parliament
Campaign: Choose Your Future
Name: Jaume Duch Guillot
Title: EP spokesman and DG COMM Media Director

CLIENT PARTNER:
European Broadcast Partners

CREATIVE AGENCY:
&Co. / NoA (Copenhagen)
Creative Director: Thomas Hoffman
Art Director: Rune Petersen
Copywriter: Johan Køhler
Social Media Planner: Emil Towity/Morten Saxnæs
Account Manager: Eva Rabenhøj
Account Director: Trine Aagaard Eisinger
Strategic Planner: Lone Tvedergaard Bach / Aylin Kanpak
Agency Executive Producer: Anders Toustrup Darre
Agency Producer: Filippa Borg von Bülow
Agency Producer Assistant: Philip C. Sem Dambæk
Agency Editor (additional content): Søren Jespersgaard Albrechtsen
Agency Editor (mood film): Alexander Topsøe
Agency Post Producer: Sidsel Ihle Eliasen

PRODUCTION COMPANY:
New Land/Academy Films
Director: Frédéric Planchon
Executive Producer: Thor Brammer Jacobsen, New Land
Executive Producer: Simon Cooper, Academy Films
Producer: Julia Fetterman
Director of Photography: Melodie Preel
Focus Puller: Andrés Gomez
Production Manager: Gemma Priggen

POST PRODUCTION
Editor: Sam Rice-Edwards
Edit House: Assembly rooms
Colour grading: Jean Clément Soret @ MPC
VFX: The Mill

Music Title: “Familiar”
Composed and performed by Nils Frahm

By Permission of Manners McDade Music Publishing Ltd

Courtesy of Erased Tapes Records
Post-Producer: Katrine Juul, New Land

SERVICE PRODUCTION COMPANIES:

Hungary:
Company: Pioneer Productions
Producer: Dorka Klim

Denmark:
Company: New Land
Producer: Arlette Walsøe
Producer: Katrine Juul Svendsgaard

Czech Republic:
Company: Unit Sofa
Producer: Eva Perez Lescay

Greece:
Company: Green Olive Films
Producer: Maria Kopanou

Tags:
Choose Your Future, European Parliament, Election campaign, Democracy, Digital film, Pioneer Productions, Unit Sofa, Green Olive Films, Frederic Planchon, Award Winning Films, Political campaign, Best Digital Campaigns, Digital Marketing Trends, Best Online marketing strategies, social media campaigns, Inspiring Short Films