Southern Comfort reckons y'all should do whatever's comfortable, which includes strutting along the beach in leather shoes. The most interesting man in the world has a wingman, who he never needs to call upon, which is why we find him here, on the beach. In leather shoes. Did I mention he's wearing shoes? It's so he won't burn his feet while strutting, see.
Dude is not a follower. Dude's the dude.
Music: Odetta "Hit or Miss"
Client: Southern Comfort, Brown-Forman
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, New York
Executive Creative Directors: Scott Vitrone + Ian Reichenthal
Creative Directors: Scott Vitrone + Ian Reichenthal
Copywriter: Nick Kaplan
Art Director: Jeff Dryer
Head of Content Production: Lora Schulson
Producer: Alison Hill
Head of Brand Strategy: Stuart Smith
Digital Strategist: Marshall Ball
Brand Strategist: Ben Alter
Account Team: Karla Stewart
Director of Business Affairs: Sara Jagielski
Production Company: Biscuit FIlmworks
Director: Tim Godsall
Executive Producer: Holly Vega
Managing Director: Shawn Lacy
Line Producer: Rick Jarjoura
Director of Photography: Edu Grau
Editorial Company: Mackenzie Cutler
Editor: Gavin Cutler
Post Producer: Sasha Hirschfeld
Editorial Assistant: Ryan Steele
VFX Company: Suspect
VFX Executive Creative Diretor: Tim Crean
VFX Supervisors: John Geehreng
VFX Flame Artists: John Geehreng
VFX CG Artists: Cedrick Gousse
Producer: Tsiliana Jolson
Telecine Company: CO3
Colorist: Tim Masick
Mix Company: Heard City
Mixer: Phil Loeb
Sound Designer: Phil Loeb / Sam Shaffer
Executive Producer: Gloria Pitagorsky
Music Supervision Company: Good Ear Music Supervision
Music Supervisor: Andrew Charles Kahn
Commercials:
Country:
Comments (71)
Fucking great. If you don't identify with this you are simply not the target audience / customer. Just fucking great.
f'ling love it ... the Dude's the dude.
+1 .. to the soul.
hell, i'm heading out for some southern comfort right about now ..
I think it is pure genius, and I think it will drive cases and bar calls alike. On a branding level, they have perfectly tapped a consumer insight precious to the 20-something male – the high praise bestowed upon friends, acquaintances, or noteworthy strangers: “He just doesn’t *give* a F*%&!”. The character is perfect 70′s style cheese and inarguably masculine (nails the cocoa-buttered beach images of my youth in L.A.). And LOVE the Hyman Roth/Lee Strasburg lookalike cameo in the sand!
It reminds me of The Most Interesting Man in the World (Dos Equis) and Damn Right Your Dad Drank It (Canadian Club) with a little Instagram-film style.
In addition to branding, some serious conversion work is going on here too. It’s a hot beach scene, so they are establishing summer refreshment & driving occasionality. It’s a lowball rocks serve, offering masculinity and full whiskey cred to a liqueur. And, there is something about the music and walking the beach with proper glassware that gets me to both on- and off-premise.
Proof that awesomeness can sell cases.
Awesome wardrobe, awesome ad!!!
I wonder if we'll get a quote from someone other than the person or people who worked on the campaign...
Well played, Nick Kaplan. Well played.
umm, I wrote the long quote above, and I work for another agency. That was pure envy, not self-promotion!
We should totally have an award show that awards stuff on their "I wish I had done that" factor.
Love this commercial!! Where is this beach?
+1 ... genius to the every detail. Thank you Southern Comfort .. and the artists that put it together.
"On the rocks, please ..."
I have never drunk Southern Comfort but gotta get some TODAY because I regularly fly my freak flag, just like The Dude has in his glass!
Love this one. He is so sexy.
Fabulous. Very sexy.
Casteldefells, Spain - just south of Barcelona.
Great ad but I have some criticisms.
1.)Everybody and their brother gets mentioned in the credits........ except for the main actor! WTF? Anyone know who he is?
2.)there is a major continuity error at ~1:02 mark.
I don't drink at all, and I never go to bars,etc..but I love this commercial. I don't know why..just do!
This ad is quite possibly the most disgusting ad I have ever seen. To see a company go this low is sad.
All those "positive" comments are fake.
If there is a market that likes this, keep those kind of people away from my family.
Just terrible.
Yes, you are getting exposure but compare it to a quality company.
terrible low class comment. Is that the best you have to offer ?
Sad.
I love this guy...love the commercial and who ever doesn't get it is pretty damned stupid. It is hilarious and real! Comments are real too.
I am not in advertising, and I don't drink much. But as a man of a certain age, the ad seems brilliant! Caught my attention, without a doubt!
Reminiscent of a scene from a bad ass Taratino flick.
I've never seen a commercial that says so much, with so little and one in which the viewer can project so much onto the character. The fact is we all know this guy, and we sometimes envy him. He lives an unencumbered lifestyle, drives a '67 Buick Rivera, and still listens to a reel to reel tape player in his apartment. He's get's along with all three ex-wives and he's perfectly fine eating dinner and going to a movie alone. Every Sunday he actually visits his sainted mother, who just adores Brandi, his long-term on again/off again girlfriend. He ocassionally plays the horses and get's together with guys from the precinct for some Texas Hold'em. Would love to see this made into a movie!
Also loved the strutting shoulder salute to the ladies.
Bet he drives a '73 Buick Riviera!
I'm with you, I LOVE everything about this commercial & I don't drink either.
Kramer/TX.
The commercial is awesome
Wildfire viral from 2011 by the way.
Oh and heee's back, he has reached the patio!
This guy is so sexy, about time real men took over!.
this guy just looks like a fucking fat prick
Just wondering how many the ad team had in them prior to hitting on this.....thinking not from this planet!......genius
Any idea who the actor is? People saying it's Mike from the Cuban Brothers but I'm pretty sure it's not...
No it isn't, that guy is too young.
This thread is still going. Yowza.
This is simply THE BEST commercial I've ever seen.
Of course the comments aren't fake, you dumb b_tch! You are also in a educationally deprived, hick minority of about 4 other sad morons. Check out intelligent opinion on this ad anywhere it appears.
Yo Karmapolice, as a lady (and as one that can see both your IP and email and found your Linkedinprofile, girlfriend), I ask you to please fucking refrain from calling people bitches on this site, vowels or not. Disagree all you want, but since you are disagreeing with AnonymousCoward #19, direct your comment at that person, and elevate the discourse to at least to the level one-step above pub-brawl in Shoreditch. When you disagree with a co-worker, I'm sure you don't immediately retort to calling them a hick minority. It's not just low class, it's lazy.
@#24 "Strutting shoulder salute to the ladies" yeah man. The dude is the dude. And his three ex wives are all bubbly ladies.
@Karmapolice What crawled up your ass?
You with the three wives theories, does he have any kids and more importantly can they strut?
Awesome blog and really an informative. Thanks for sharing a lovely blog
Why thanks. It was also an informative spam link, at the end of your comment, but we had to delete that.
How utterly pathetic are you? Why is it disgusting? Because the guy is comfortable enough in his own skin to star in an advert? Personally its people like you who disgust me with your total belief that you are "better" than another human being, my guess is your family's probably as f***ed up as you are yourself and not one f*** would be given if you all vanished of the face of the earth right this instant. As for the advert well its always nice to see someone who has'nt been airbrushed away to nothingness (Probably what your used to seeing in your "vogue" or whatever other presumptuous crap you read). Utterly pathetic.
Good ad but I am a beer man myself
As a 30something male I feel that I'm probably part of the target audience, but all I see is "if you want to be an obese and slightly slimy old man drink Southern Comfort". Not really that enticing.
it's only enticing if you like irony with your drink.
I wish I was this man,
and I'm now proud of my beer belly
Classic ad, beautifully shot and directed
Really repositioned Southern Comfort for me away from sticky Americana to independent-minded anysomething male.
Maybe it doesn't appeal to many twenty somethings, but there are millions for whom this is on the nail.
I can see women appreciating the irony and beauty of it too, just in a different way.
Good and brave call Mr/Ms brand manager.
I don't work in advertising, but I liked this ad so much that I wanted to find out more about it and Google brought me here.
Southern Comfort used to be a drink that lad-ettes mixed with lemonade. Now apparently it's for me. This ad brought joy to my day, and in return I shall be buying a bottle at the earliest opportunity.
I've no idea what it tastes like. If I like it I'll probably buy more; if not I won't. Great ad!
Excellent ad..On so many levels.... Not everyone's cup of tea...but nothing ever is..! IMO If you take offence in it I think you are probably missing the point and taking it too seriously.
This Man...so proud and comfy in his 'paddling shoes, pot belly, big knickers and 70's throwback hair'..! Love him or loathe him He and Southern Comfort has brought us ALL HERE..!
I am here because I wanted to know the name of the Dude...I've already downloaded the song...I love Soul music..Otis Redding Etta James etc..
This is a bit of tongue-in-cheek, funky fun.. I love it... And I haven't had a Southern Comfort for years but I might just have one over Christmas and bring back some fond fun memories..... I used to go out drinking Southern Comfort ...not because it was cool...(was it..?) but because it was sweet and I have a sweet tooth..! Drinking beer/lager makes some (ahem) women bilious and prone to excess visits to the bathroom...! It did get a bit sickly after a couple though...which is good because I'd alternate and just order a diet cola. So I CAN remember so many funny nights out in my early to mid twenties..without getting sick or finding strange numbers in my pocket in the morning (drama student..so no mobile..giving my age away..!)
So pat the person or person's on the back who came up with the simple idea..the probably 'statistically average' guy who isn't ashamed to strut on the beach even though he isn't a natural Adonis ...just because the fashion Media/society said he should be..!
Hurrah still Nameless Dude....each to his own..and you OWN that beach..holding up a glass and toast..Cheers to you..!
(I'd love to have a shot in advertising now..#inspired..!)
Hi, my friend Pete was so inspired by this advert that he made us film him recreating it on a freezing cold football pitch in the North of England in December:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LfE751K0Kg
I hope you enjoy his efforts... All in the name of a good cause (and a bottle of Southern Comfort so he could warm up afterwards), the local Children's Hospital:
http://www.justgiving.com/wildmanbudgiewalk
Nice to see someone taking a silly ad and doing good with it. Cheers, mate. Hope you raise a lot of dough for the kids.
... What a sad person you must be if you cannot appreciate the sheer class of this brilliant ad in all it's delightful aspects !!!
The fact that you choose not to justify your remarks just goes to show the level of your ignorance and demonstrates your total lack of intelligence, I mean why bother to take the time to voice your views without justifying your criticism ?
Personally I'd prefer to keep my distance from people like yourself and keep you and your family well away from my own !!
Absolutely Brilliant ad, the best I've seen in a long long time.
@froggo who are you directing that comment to?
.....Apologies for not being clearer in the direction of my comment which Is directed towards the negative comments left by Anonymous Coward on 13 September 2.53.
Kind Regards
Froggo.
The actor is Mel Shampain: http://www.facebook.com/mel.shampain
Southern comfort beach man is completely hot. I totally would. He looks great and if I hadn't have got utterly wankered on southern comfort 14 yrs ago I would be well up for some right about now
Just picked up a bottle in my local co-op. I had thought it was a bourbon, but turns out it's a 35% liqueur.
Liqueur? At the beach? There's "I don't give a fuck" and there's "I have no taste". Oh dear...
: - (
The man is wearing leather shoes at the beach and teeny speedo-shorts. You were warned about the "no taste" thing.
This ad is a rubbish. 'Very creative' but most probably will appeal to maybe 5 or 10 people and bring another disappointing decline in sales and share for the brand. It is just disgusting to watch it.
The actor is not Mel Shampain .. compare the noses and the space between upper lip and nose ... Answer - it's not Mel Shampain
The actor in this ad' gives an ora of, and looks like a Greek Cypriot God - Come and get me any time !! He's cool and i'd like to hear about all his stories in life.
I'd really be interested to know who this actor is too - anyone brave enough to ask the Agency ?
Most Fabulous and original ad', and I don't impress easily. Also while we're at it - can someone tell us who came up with the idea / concept ??
B.r.b.... going to buy me a bottle :-)
Shot on the beaches of Casteldefells south of Barcelona, Spain by Biscuit Filmworks’ Tim Godsall for Wieden + Kennedy, New York.
mel shampain is not his facebook photo...an inside joke of some sort for W K
Impressive. Did your mom teach you all those big words?
Thank you.
i just don't get it. I had to google it to make sure i wasn't missing something.
+1 best advert I've watched for ages, if I hear the tune I actually run to my living room to watch.
+1 best advert I've watched for ages, if I hear the tune I actually run to my living room to watch.
Ok maybe a little behind the times here, but this is an awesome advert - hits all the right notes- quality soundtrack, "joe average" main lead, unassuming product placement.... perfect. Everyone wants to be the "slightly overweight 70's dude" (read unassuming Everyman) strutting along the beach. No sex, no scantily clad women, no wild parties, just Joe Average walking along deciding to get a "short".... CLASS.
not sure i would call leaving a beach to walk off camera and coming back with a highball glass an "unassuming product placement."
How did I miss this great ad for a great brand? Disclaimer: I am an unabashed 100 proof Southern Comfort on the rocks drinker.
When I am at-the-beach I am not that guy but my friend is that guy, sometimes. Since I am allergic to sunlight (read that as 2nd degree burns) you will see me in jeans, long sleeve shirt & boots holding a big-ass coffee cup full of 100 proof SC.
Fun ad. cheers.
How do they give all the production information and not list the name of the actor?
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