How The Farmer's Dog took the lead by showcasing an Emmy-nominated advertisement
The team from The Farmer's Dog, the purpose of their very first Super Bowl ad was simple to make viewers cry.
"There was a line in the brief that was essentially like, if you don't get the viewers to cry that's a failure," says filmmaker Goh Iromoto who adapted The Farmer's Dog now-iconic (and Emmy-nominated!) advertisement "Forever" to life. "I'll never forget that line. This was an extremely important driving force, creatively, for me."
We wanted to learn more about the Staff-Picked spot that was the highest-rated advertisement from the 2023 Super Bowl and has received the Emmy nomination (!) So we talked to Goh and the creative team at The Farmer's Dog to find the details of their amazing teamwork, their extremely detailed description of the brief, as well as the dogs which inspired the ad campaign. Check out the show's key takeaways, or catch the full conversation above.
| Name of the project | "Forever" The Farmer's Dog |
| Stakeholders |
Teressa Iezzi, Director of Content/Creative
Sophie Forman, Director of Brand Design |
| Goals of the campaign |
Teressa and Sophie were looking to develop an ad that embodied their company rallying cry, "Long Live Dogs."
The company has historically focused its advertising to the in-depth aspects of its products. But Teressa and Sophie were aware that the Q1 campaign needed to more clearly define its purpose -- of helping dogs live longer and happier, healthier lives -- into focus in a unique manner. |
| Goals |
• Recreate The Farmer's Dog goal and rallying call with a powerful, artistic way
Create an emotional narrative that goes beyond the specifics of the product |
| Timeline |
The entire campaign took about four months from start to finish to execute The break-down of the production going like this:
October | Short stage November | Goh shares his pitch with his team December | Shoot January | Post-production February Live! |
| Resources | The Farmer's Dog team worked incredibly together with Goh to generate the final product. Goh played the role of creative director and director for the project and Teressa and Sophie served as key stakeholders in shaping the project. The trio worked closely throughout the entire project, from beginning to finish. |
| Key takeaways |
* Invest in your brief
• Focus on the story and not on the product * Great work deserves great promotion |