NEW YORK, NY - September 29, 2015 - Advertising Week NYC - Virool, the fastest growing video advertising platform for marketers, today announced the winning team in its Race to Zero Gravity, a contest designed to inspire and celebrate innovation in online video advertising. During a panel discussion about "How Emotions Predict the Virality of Videos" on stage at Advertising Week NYC today, the grand prize is being awarded to Quaker Canada for "The Recital" -- a heartwarming video campaign that captured the hearts of the contest judges.
Digital media is increasingly moving towards long-form advertisements: branded video that uses the canvas of the web to tell meaningful stories and evoke emotion. Submitted to the contest by OMD Canada, "The Recital" captivates a digital audience with a touching story about a father and daughter that are asked one very simple question: what would you like to do together? The answer they each gave was the same: they wanted to spend more time with each other.
Created by studio m, "The Recital" by Quaker Canada takes viewers through an emotional journey as dad and daughter rehearse a dance together to surprise mom on stage at the year-end recital. Just under five minutes long, the video was released in August 2015 and has ignited social conversations with nearly 11 million views on YouTube and Facebook and 26,000 social shares to date.
"There are several key factors contribute to the success of a online video advertising campaign," said Alex Debelov, CEO of Virool. "We had so many amazing submissions to the contest but 'The Recital' went above and beyond our imagination with a heartwarming story that truly captures the sentiment of the Quaker Canada brand. We could not be more excited to welcome Quaker and studio m on stage at Advertising Week today and send them into orbit together next month."
"We developed this video to encourage Canadians to do more of what matters today and we're thrilled at the reception it's had," says Lindsay Ho, Marketing Manager, Quaker Canada. "We are glad that 'The Recital' delivers a range of emotions and we hope that viewers take the core message to heart: stop putting off the things that make you happy so you make the most of each moment and of every day."
"Working with brands like Quaker, who are willing to explore new forms of brand storytelling, is a very exciting opportunity to engage audiences like never before," says Mike Mills, Executive Producer of studio m. "studio m is a Toronto-based content shop and we've been lucky to work with brands and agencies throughout the world on some really compelling work. To be recognized by Virool and the judges for this work, and to be given this once in a lifetime award, is very gratifying."
"All of the ten finalist videos that I judged on the Zero Gravity contest were very unique and inspiring, however Quaker 'The Recital' literally brought me to tears and that is why, above all else, I voted for it as the winner of the contest," said Mari Kim Novak, CMO, Rubicon Project. "The InLine unit is inspiring a new wave of creativity among marketers, who are now liberated from the constraints of pre-roll and we're thrilled to be working with Virool to enable creatives like Quaker distribute meaningful brand narratives and compelling content to their intended audiences."
About the Virool Race to Zero Gravity Contest
Kicking off last year at Advertising Week NYC, the Race to Zero Gravity Contest invited video marketers to submit their best branded videos for a shot at winning a weightless experience with their entire team. Competing with more than 250 teams from across the world, Quaker Canada was selected as the winner of the contest by an esteemed panel of judges including notable industry leaders and celebrities: Troy Carter, Ricky Van Veen, Casey Neistat, Chingy, Mari Kim Novak and Jack Myers. Next month, the entire team will experience weightlessness aboard Zero Gravity Corporation's aircraft, G-FORCE ONE, the same aircraft that NASA uses.
The winner will be presented at Advertising Week NYC 2015 on Tuesday, September 29th at 2:15 p.m. EST in the Times Center Hall during a panel discussion titled "How Emotion Predicts the Virality of Videos." Panelists include AJ Hassan, VP Creative Director, Leo Burnett; Mari Kim Novak, CMO of Rubicon Project; Chingy, Platinum-selling hip hop artist; Bonin Bough, Chief Media and eCommerce Officer at Mondelēz International; and Corey Evans, Manager, Sponsorship, Community Investment and Experiential Marketing at WestJet.
