19 December 2013
Spectacular campaign launches the NZSO Season
The Church, a Wellington-based design and communications agency, has launched an impressive multi-channel campaign for
the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.
With a partnership spanning four years, the work The Church have done with the NZSO has recast – almost reinvented – the
image of the country’s national orchestra, year after year. The 2014 Season campaign is the biggest yet: 15 unique
videos, a micro-website, an App (the NZSO’s first), a brochure, material for outdoor marketing, and 15 still photos to
match the 15 videos – providing the NZSO with content to use for marketing its 15 concert tours throughout the year.
Over four months of planning and production went into the project.
“I believe this is best marketing campaign in the NZSO’s 67-year history, and possibly one of the best ever in the
Orchestral music sector”, says The Church’s Managing Director, Paul Soong.
The aim of this campaign is to get classical music outside its normal spheres of influence – but not by pretending to be
anything it’s not. Rather, by exposing what it is.
Putting the music itself front and centre, the videos are key to the campaign. There are 15, one to represent each
concert tour. Each video presents a visual concept to describe the emotion of the accompanying music; a vignette,
depicting a theme of emotion for each concert tour. These themes are brought to life in diverse ways, including bespoke
props, super slow motion recording, and an extraordinary cat. A slice of the music from the relevant concert gives
dramatic effect and draws an emotional response from the viewer.
“This campaign has turned heads – it’s certainly a different take and we hope that new audiences of Kiwis will come and
try out this art form”, says NZSO’s Head of Marketing Thierry Pannetier.
The Church’s agency team worked alongside trusted collaborators: Flying Saucer films’ Hamish Johnson as video producer
and director, and Steven Boniface as photographer. The 30” films were shot on a Red Epic camera, enabling super slow
motion recording.
Additional help came via the Co_nnection at Massey University, which provided students to help with film pre-production,
and making and testing the props.
View the campaign: http://www.nzso.co.nz/season2014/
Download the App (for tablets only)
ENDS