Toyota, AA Insurance and PAK’nSAVE - Kiwis Make the Break

Given 1 NEWS at Six was THE place people turned to for Covid updates, it made sense to capture this massive audience straight afterwards and give them a moment to cheer them up.

So we created ‘Kiwis Make The Break’ , a competition to encourage participation and change the narrative to one of positivity by using a much-loved TVNZ show Seven Sharp, and playful talent that Kiwis connect with.

We invited Kiwis to direct and star in a recreation of their favourite ad, taking inspiration from one of three key brand partners: Toyota, AA Insurance and PAK’nSAVE. Three winners would make up an ad break during Seven Sharp and receive a cash prize.

With no idea whether the rest of NZ outside of Auckland would be released from lockdown early, the ads had to be makeable anywhere, no matter the alert level. The competition was the first-ever commercial content creation brief for viewers and the quality of the entries would be a complete surprise.

Combining the brands in a promotion, rather than advertising them independently, lifted their profile into a celebration of NZ advertising, and the feel-good factor gave people comfort in the familiar at an uncertain time, plus our partners got far more than they ever would in a singular ad spot.