ARISTON AQUALTIS | UNDERWATER WORLD | 2006
There Was an Ocean Living Inside the Washing Machine / ARISTON "UNDERWATER WORLD"
A washing machine ad won the Gold Lion at Cannes and ended up in the Louvre. A washing machine ad.
The problem
The selling point of a new washing machine called Aqualtis was "Big inside" — basically just that it had a roomy drum. For a product category about as far from poetry as you can get, white goods, Leo Burnett Milan chose not to show spec sheets but to turn the inside of the drum into a universe.
The insight
Instead of stating "spacious" as a number, make people believe there's a whole world in there. Socks become fish, a bra becomes a clam, a scarf becomes a jellyfish. The whole thing is carried purely by the strength of these visual metaphors. The act of doing laundry gets turned into magic, with no specs required.
The idea
The washing machine door closes, the camera zooms into the window, and we're underwater. What looks like an eel is actually a sock; a jellyfish is a handkerchief. Set to music by Vangelis, the clothes swim around. At the end the camera pulls back to reveal a boy peering into the window. 80% of it was shot practically, so there's none of that fake digital look.
What happened
It won the Gold Lion at Cannes, and a Grand Clio the following year. In the Gunn Report 2007 it ranked second among the world's most awarded ads, recognized at more than 15 festivals. The director was Dario Piana, production was by Filmmaster, and post-production was handled by BUF Compagnie Paris.
Afterthought
Laundry can become an ocean. "Big inside" wasn't really about capacity — it was about the size of the imagination behind it. I'd love to make an ad that ends up in the Louvre too.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2006
