In 1995, all eyes were on the hotshot agency Jimenez/DMB&B , the ad shop owned by the husband and wife team, Ramon and Abby Lee Jimenez. They were fast gaining a reputation as brand builders, taking on mostly no. 2 brands like Selecta (vs. #1 Magnolia) and Pfizer (vs. Unilab), then turning these into formidable challengers that caused market leaders to pay more attention to the agency’s successful campaigns.
When Jimenez/DMB&B took on the rising lifestyle brand BENCH/ , the brand relied on out-of-home and point-of-sale materials like billboards and posters to increase its visibility. The extension of the product line beyond clothing prompted the company to look into the possibility of using mainstream TV advertising. Thus, BENCH/ took their new lifestyle offerings—Beddings, Stationery and Cologne Spray---to the fledgling agency to see what they can do with them despite a limited budget allocation for TV production.
Unfazed, Jimenez/DMB&B creatives took on the challenge and created three (3) 15 sec. TVCs on a very short shoestring budget. All were designed to carry single scenes, shot with a solo camera, using a “tabletop” setting. No talents were used—saved for a hand talent that belonged to an agency personnel.
The over-riding visual theme were the 3 elements: Earth, Wind, and Fire. Hence, you see a folded paper boat made to float on a stoney creek (for Stationery products), a bed sheet hanging from a tree branch, billowing in the wind (for Beddings), and the flickering flame of a candle bursting into a blaze (for Cologne Spray).
The 3 simple, but stunning ads were received with wide acclaim. The campaign dominated the Low Budget production category, winning an Award of Excellence at the 1995 Philippine Advertising Congress Araw Awards in Baguio City. But the BENCH/ “Fire” version for the Cologne Spray did even better by winning a Platinum Award, the supreme accolade ever for the best TV ad with the highest level of excellence---all compressed in 15 seconds, and produced at a very low budget.
CREDITS:
AGENCY: JIMENEZ/ DMBB&B
EXEC. CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Butch Uy
WRITER: Teddy Catuira / ART DIRECTOR: Nikko Cornelio
CLIENTS: BENCH SUYEN CORP.
SOURCES:
4 A's youtube channel: Bench,Fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfwQoLwOe3k
Very impressive!!!
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