W为New Balance的新广告再一次令我们眼界大开——这一次他们拿出了一部近乎当代艺术般的作品。这部名为《未完成的自我》的短片通过抽象独白的方式展示了New Balance——这个W的长期合作伙伴——的最新997.5产品系列。
W is not an agency afraid to experiment with new genres of filmmaking. The Shanghai agency’s new spot, crafted around an abstract monologue, is the latest in a growing line of bold work for long-time client New Balance, following the powerful The Color of Youth and documentary-style 110th Anniversary campaigns.
从豆瓣到墨迹天气，W一直在拿出新的创意。即使是在New Balance方面，W所推出的作品也涵盖了从《青春的原色》的叙事类型，到110周年时《每一步都算数》的纪录片类型，再到这一次的艺术片。本片带领观众踏入了一场探索997.5新款跑步鞋材质乃至整个New Balance历史的旅途。
Titled “We Are Uncompleted And To Be Continued”, the film launches New Balance’s latest sneaker product, 997.5, a combination of its classic 997 and 998 series. The film takes us on a journey through the brand’s history, telling the origin story of the sneaker starting with the smallest details of its material makeup.
尽管这部作品风格与W以往的几支作品大相径庭，我们仍能从其中嗅出这家上海广告公司的气息与野心——正如他们不断的涉足广告圈以外的行动一样，代表了这些创意人不断进取的野心。这其中的原因或许也与这款鞋的由来有关：作为New Balance经典系列998与997的结合体，这只跑鞋对于整个公司来说更像一件艺术品。而W方面也希望如同往常一样，在这一支广告上有所突破。
Explaining the creative direction, W ECD Li Sanshui said, “As the combination of two classic series, we want people to see 997.5 not only as a sneaker product, but an art piece” adding, “Just as New Balance are launching this new product line, we as an advertising agency also want to present something new.”
这样一部艺术气息浓重的电影无疑需要一位重量级的配音师来为其增添最后的点缀。第一次接触到导演剪辑版时，脑海中第一个浮现起的身影就是张涵予低沉浑厚的声音。当我们去问李三水时，他笑了：“是我们的配音老师。不过我们一开始想过找姜文来配音。”姜文曾与W在大众点评的电影推广中有过合作历史。然而这一计划犹豫种种原因未能实现。
Though unique in style, the new film nonetheless bears the agency’s signature copy heavy content. The voice over steals the show, a thick, deep that has reminded some viewers of actor Zhang Hanyu. When we put this to Li, he laughed “We needed a voice powerful enough to attract people. At first we thought of inviting Jiang Wen to do it,” referring to the famous Chinese director with whom W worked on the award-winning Dianping movie campaign. However, Jiang was unavailable, so the agency used an in-house artist. “He did a fantastic job”, says Li.
W作品：大众点评《评什么爱姜文》 | Dianping.com: Gone with your comments on Jiang Wen, by W
这部影片的推出也在消费者中引起了不小的轰动。在微博话题#未完成的自我下，消费者纷纷参与讨论并晒出了最新购买的New Balance 997.5系列。
The film has been a hit online with over a million views on the hashtag #We Are Uncompleted and to be Continued on Weibo and a flurry of people posting their fresh New Balance 997.5s on WeChat and Instagram.
W已经证明了自己在中国广告圈的独特创意能力，他们也从未掩饰过自己的野心。经过这一次的洗礼，W又会给我们带来怎样的惊喜呢？正如李三水一直强调的那样“让作品自己说话”——我们所能做的也只有期待了。
W is always an agency to watch with creative ambitions that extend beyond advertising, manifested in recent times by a music album release and providing art direction for Maleon’s puppet show.
制作名单：
- 客户：New Balance
- 广告公司: W
- 导演：陈子洋
- 监制：Ken
- 后期：钱佳伟 宋颖
- 剪辑：苏桢
Credits：
- Client: New Balance
- Agency: W
- Director: Chen Ziyang
- Executive Producer: Ken
- Post Production: Qian Jiawei, Song Yin
- Editor: Su Zhen
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