Brand strategy, advertising and design company 72andSunny is rolling out a new campaign for Discovery Channel with an optimistic message: "The World is Just Awesome." To launch the idea, 72andSunny created a :60 film titled "I Love the World" that premieres April 15th. Three :30 show promos break this summer.
72andSunny won the brand strategy and creative assignment in 2007. The company's mission to build a brand platform from the ground up focused on engaging active, curious 18-30-year-olds while reinforcing the network's loyal audience of older viewers. The result is best summed up by the campaign's positive theme line: "The World Is Just Awesome."
Said Dan Bragg, VP Creative Director, Discovery Communications, "Our collaboration with 72andSunny was fantastic. They brought us a clear strategy, brand positioning, creative point-of-view and ultimately, a campaign of significance. With their creative partnership, this idea and execution, they really helped reinvent how people engage with our brand and capitalized on the cultural momentum our programs have been delivering on for so many years."
"I Love the World" stars some of Discovery Channel's signature talent, along with regular folks from around the world. Even Stephen Hawking makes a cameo. The spot is anchored by a reworking of the campfire classic "I Love the Mountains" made famous by its infectious "Boom De Ah Dah" chorus.
Gorgeous cinematography captures the world's breathtaking wonders as the whole world joins in by singing along.
In the opening scene of the launch spot, two astronauts hover in earth's orbit, admiring the view. One astronaut says, "It never gets old, does it," while the other replies, "Nope." Inspired, they break into song, and soon the entire planet joins in. A quick succession of vignettes filmed in exotic locales show South African tribal dancers, revelers watching fireworks on a tropical beach at dusk, a procession of chanting Buddhist monks and more, all singing a line from the whimsical yet profound song that celebrates everything from Great Whites and tornados to hot magma and human curiosity.
Discovery Channel personalities also demonstrate what they consider awesome about the world. DIRTY JOBS' Mike Rowe sings while descending into a rat-infested sewer, MAN VS. WILD'S Bear Grylls gets personal with a massive spider, FUTURE WEAPONS' host Richard "Mack" Machowicz demos his favorite rocket launcher, MYTHBUSTERS' Adam Savage sets co-host Jamie Hyneman on fire, and new host Josh Bernstein nearly gets swept away by an F5 tornado. More evidence that the world is just awesome.
72andSunny worked closely with Discovery Channel's internal and external marketing and creative groups in the US and globally, to ensure this brand platform was communicated consistently across the entire company.
"Part of the fun of building a brand platform with Discovery Channel is their heritage of inspiring content and their smart, active fan base," said Glenn Cole, Creative Director and Co-Founder, 72andSunny. "Our goal was to create an idea that took advantage of that: Discovery Channel is The World's Biggest Fan of the World. Bringing an idea like that to life is just what it sounds like a party. How does the World's Biggest Fan of the World express itself? Easy. The world is just awesome!"