Campaign and Classic Dance Film For Hong Kong Ballet
Design Army has launched an inventive new campaign for Hong Kong Ballet — celebrating its 45th anniversary and the opening its first-ever ballet academy — and reimagining the classic art. The purposefully “weird” campaign embraces dance as a universal language and, says agency CCO and co-founder Pum Lefebure, is “wholly authentic to Hong Kong culture — while mashing inspo from Degas’ ballerina portraits, the Renaissance age, and hip hop. From the wildly witty ‘Tutu Academy’ to the sci-fi extraterrestrial, it’s a defiantly unconventional, joyful journey connecting everyone — even aliens — to dance’s unearthly magic.”
The 50+ renowned troupe leads a Hong Kong tutu take-over — from its renowned university halls, to Tai Kwun’s iconic plaza, to the majestic High Island Reservoir. Vibrant color, gravity-defying moves, and bizarreness collide with koi fish-inspired hairdos, punk rockers on pointe, a jelly-like gold-toothed alien, and a tutu-wearing spaceship ending.
The color palette, explains Lefebure, is inspired by Degas’ ballerina portraits, which “we playfully wondered what the artist’s work would look like if we brought it to life today. The result is a story popping with the painter’s gorgeous coral hues mixed with Hong Kong’s heritage red — all juxtaposed with vivid shades of juicy jade, like the head-toe painted alien, that explode with extraterrestrial contrast.”
Blurring impressionist, classic, heritage, future and pop eras, Design Army sought to create an all-encompassing visual world — including concept, art direction, styling, set design and props. The campaign can be seen on the ballet’s website as well as social media, print, billboard ads in Hong Kong, and more.
“It was a dream,” says Lefebure, “to work with long-time collaborators — director Dean Alexander and Hong Kong Ballet’s artistic director, Septime Webre — to create a new masterpiece … We hope this will be a classic dance film for many years to come.”
