Who: Telus, with The&Partnership for creative and strategy; Drift Films for production (directed by Joe Dixon); Nimiopere and Alter Ego for post-production; TA2 for music; and Carat for media.
What: “That’s. So. Metal.” a campaign using heavy metal music and hard-rock critters to promote the arrival of Apple’s new iPhone 15 Pro, made with titanium (ie. made with metal).
When & Where: The campaign is live now, running on TV, digital and social, as well as out of home.
Why: Apple introduced the iPhone 15 Pro last month, and one of its key features is the titanium casing, making it slightly lighter, but also more durable.
Each of the big Canadian carriers is offering the phone, but Telus wanted its distinct look and feel. That means critters, of course, but also the well-known music that has been front and centre in recent campaigns, like Iggy Azalea’s “I’m so fancy” for the iPhone 14, for example.
“[T]o launch the first-of-its-kind titanium iPhone, we thought it was only fitting to match such an occasion with a first of our own—a campaign that uses critters and music to embrace all things metal,” said Lise Doucet, marketing communications director at Telus, in a release.
To emphasize the campaign’s metal theme, Telus and The&Partnership chose animals that were “badass,” and “edgy, yet adorable.”
How: The campaign is anchored by a 30-second spot that blends product shots of the iPhone 15, with a new herd of Telus critters—highland cows, silkie chickens, and Shetland ponies—that magically assume the air of classic ’80s hair metal rock stars posing for an album cover, thanks to the soundtrack: Judas Priest’s “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming.”
Meanwhile, supers are used to explain that the phones are made with titanium—“That’s. So. Metal.” —before closing with the brand’s signature “future friendly” tagline.
“It was a way to bring Apple’s ‘titanium’ news to life while leveraging our core brand identity,” said Doucet. “And we think our metal-loving cast of critters did the trick.”
Why those animals? “We looked for critters that embodied what we felt were classic heavy metal looks,” said Hannah Fishman, The&Partnership’s CCO for North America. “So you have the long-maned Shetland Pony and shaggy Highland cow doing some serious head banging, just like your favourite metal rocker. Add in the spiky feathered silkie chicken and the rest of the crew and it’s just a very hard-rocking metal vibe.”
