The video titled ‘A Message from the Future’ was filmed in New York as a grandfather recounts his experience of the pandemic. It begins with black and white clips of empty streets as the voiceover recalls the fear, anxiety and confusion when the virus threatened people’s health and livelihoods. The film switches to colour only when he begins to talk about his family, ‘we realized something – we had each other and we were finally together.’

The music and narrative switches to a more upbeat and hopeful tone as the video brings the story back to the Jollibee brand. The product placement is subtle as the family are seen sharing food around the table creating positive brand associations for the consumer.

Sascha Kuntze, chief creative officer at BBH Singapore, says,  “We got a little tired of seeing empty streets and locked up places in commercials. The pandemic was and is a lot more personal. To really make an impact we wanted to show a perspective nobody had explored before.”

This is Jollibee’s first global brand campaign developed by BBH Singapore. Directed by Law Chen, the creative centred on the brand’s tagline ‘Joy of Family’ and reimagined this brand identity in the context of the pandemic. At the end of the video the grandfather says, ‘in my memory, that was the year of family.’

The three minute long campaign was part of Jollibee’s wider initiative for Thanksgiving month, which encourages consumers to be thankful for their families. “We wanted this campaign to acknowledge the grim reality of the current pandemic but still give a positive message of hope,” adds Francis Flores, marketing head at Jollibee.