Every week, Communicate will examine the highlights in film communications and content. For more from #CommunicateLens, follow @Communicatemag

Guinness
In the 1980s, for a woman to leave a successful career and get married was ordinary and expected in Japanese culture. At a time when harassment was a given, the Liberty Fields fought against the odds to establish the first Japanese women’s rugby team, and ended up representing their country at the Women’s Rugby World Cup. This is the story Guinness has chosen to tell in a five-minute documentary, advocating for inclusivity and diversity to celebrate women as pioneers of change.

The Liberty Tale documentary is the latest addition to Guiness’ Made of More series, adding up to a variety of other stories supporting real champions. It fits within Guiness’ corporate image as an advocate for change, driving innovation and pushing boundaries against all odds.

Kia

Children aren’t afraid to ask uncomfortable questions, and Kia has partnered with Sky Media to bring them into the scene, in a six week campaign set to run through video on demand. The campaign, solely presented by kids, plans to raise awareness of electric cars to drive positive change and sustainability, as well as promote Kia’s new electric car range.

In the opening video, a child is steering a car wheel making sounds with his voice, while also introducing the topic of electric cars for the upcoming films. The initiative will see a cast entirely made up of children, to develop brand awareness and warmth among families. It is a fresh take on a brand campaign, befitting Kia’s CSR plans to mitigate climate change and secure green technologies in the near future.

Mini

Most car brand videos build on tropes of empowerment, freedom, playing beyond the rules and creativity. Most also show a car, sooner or later. This is not the case of Mini’s latest short film, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and ad agency Droga5. The award-winning Greek director is known for his experimental style, and he has brought his artistic influences into the short, 10-minute film he wrote and directed for Droga5. The film is brimming with surrealism, featuring a professional cello player who makes an encounter during commute, with unexpected ramifications on his life.

The short film, titled ‘Nimic,’ asks questions about identity, perception, relationships and circularity, and it doesn’t feature a single Mini car. Instead, the official trailer takes a creative approach reminiscent of experimental and surrealistic cinema, with frequent jump cuts and fragmented narrative, to bring a fresh take on video communications in its 33 seconds. Nimic will only be shown at film festivals, and it is officially sponsored by Mini; with it, the company plans to show its commitment to creativity and creative industries, by adopting an unconventional approach to demonstrate its values.

South Western Railway
Holiday pictures often feature landscapes and landmarks, failing to remind how bonding certain train travels can be. They are a moment to spend some time with the family, in an external ‘non place’ away from the daily routine. South Western Railway has launched, alongside Engine, a new film campaign to position its brand as a network of experiences, inspiring families to take the train for long trips and create lasting memories together.

The film follows a family travelling from London to Bournemouth, picking up a few new friends along the way. Moving from an aquarium to the beach and passing across a few museums, their holiday will be gradually enriched by the presence of mummies, London guards, queen Victoria, a playful seal and more, to symbolise how ‘great days never leave you.’ The short film sits alongside significant investment in the railway, and it invites travellers to explore South Western Railway destinations to enjoy their time on long train trips. The organisation is about to implement several improvements across the railway network, such as free Wi-Fi, more seats and more capacity, and the film campaign hopes to reposition the brand as a hub of meaningful experiences for the whole family, to drive success in the near future.

Virgin Holidays

To support Virgin Holidays commitment to responsible tourism, particularly working only with organisations that are committed to not taking animals from the wild. This has inspired its partnerships with the World Cetacean Alliance and the National Aquarium in Baltimore. To communicate this commitment, it worked with Sequel Group on a film exploring its commitment and partnerships. The film is a unique way of exploring the partnership in more detail and providing a deeper look into one of Virgin Holidays’ key CSR commitments.

The content is filmed in documentary style, with experts and leaders from all the organisations discussing their goals, interspersed with film of experiences Virgin Holidays customers can actually have, while still being respectful to the oceans and marine life. It provides a deeper look into the CSR programme, and the products, in an engaging way that puts Virgin Holidays’ sustainability communications at the heart of its brand positioning.