The Kia Soul was introduced a year ago, becoming instantly popular within the youth-segment vehicle category. Along with the vehicle’s popularity was that of the integrated advertising launch campaign, most recognized by its television commercial featuring the Soul’s furry spokesmen (or spokesrodents) – the hamsters. In a world of hamsters monotonously running on their wheels, a trio of hamsters came rolling into the city in a Kia Soul – “A New Way to Roll.” They cruised in their fresh distinct ride to a series of music tracks, each one featured in four variations of the commercial, making the other hamsters on their wheels instantly jealous and irrelevant. The TV commercial has become incredibly popular, being rated “Automotive Ad of the Year” by Nielsen, recently winning an Effie and earning millions of views online.
Given the success of the Soul launch and the hamsters’ popularity, they are returning for a second time in this year’s follow-up Soul campaign. This time around, we return to a city of hamsters, now a bustling metropolis filled with hamsters from all walks of life. In the style of a music video, and to the classic hip hop track “The Choice is Yours” by notable 90’s hip hop group Black Sheep, our hero hamsters in the Soul take us through a day in the life, cruising through the city in their Alien Green Kia Soul. But unlike the first spot, the other less fortunate, jealous hamsters are in more than just monotonous hamster wheels. They ride along (and fail) in dull and characterless vehicles – toasters, washing machines and cardboard boxes. Our hero hamsters compare their Soul and all its amazing features to the other disappointing, boxy rides as they rap the song’s lyrics “You can go with this, or you can go with that.” We follow them as they walk through the neighborhood, cruise around the city in their Soul, hang out with the neighborhood hamsters and make the poor hamsters in their vanilla rides envious.
Along with the original Soul television commercial and the recent Kia Sorento “Joyride” commercial that featured a posse of toys and stuffed animals on a joyride road trip, the newest Soul ad is high in production and entertainment value. In place of a traditional and formulaic car ad, the Soul commercial continues to entertain in cinemas, on television and online in a big way. Understanding that the Soul’s audience plays a great deal in the digital space, and that they viewed the first hamster commercial multiple times, the newest hamster experience is rich with details in the hamster world and provides additional integrated Soul content for people to discover with repeat viewings. And there is plenty more hamster and Soul content to come, following the hasmters’ return to the streets in the new commercial.
Credits:
Chief Creative Officer: David Angelo
Executive Creative Director: Colin Jeffery
Art Director / ACD: Rodrigo Butori
Copywriter: Noah Phillips
Executive Producer, Managing Director: Carol Lombard
Executive Producer: Paul Albanese
Production Company: Partizan
Director: Antoine Bardou Jacquet
Director of Photography: Guillermo Navarro
Executive Producer: Sheila Stepanek
Line Producer: Louis Saint-Calibre
Editing House: Union Editorial
Editors: Jim Haygood (Union) and Bill Smedley (via Work Post – London)
Producer: Michael Romandi
Post Effects: Frame Store London
Producer: Tim Keene
