adidas has handed over the creative reigns to the next generation who are turning an open mindset into a way of life.
In the adidas Originals Forum Newsroom, Gen-Z creators, musicians, artists and designers were offered a space to share ideas, inspiration, and opinions in a truly open and safe environment.
The project was conceptualised by creative agency Andpeople in partnership with adidas Originals and aimed to disrupt traditional creative processes through the empowerment of authentic audience collaboration.
“While many brands are looking for ways to engage with younger audiences, few have offered an alternative way to collaborate and create side by side, with Gen-Z. A lot of brands are guilty of targeting this cohort, not truly enabling them,” says Alexander Wu-Kim, creative director at Andpeople
Centered on themes of Identity & Community, Sustainability, Culture, Creativity, Empathy & Equality the Newsroom offered a space for 30 of the country’s most talented photographers, artists, musicians and content creators to conceptualise and execute an entirely open brief based on these editorial themes.
Gen-Z creators include the likes of photographers Jae Besorio, Willhelm Philipp and Sarah Lay, artists 3K and Ashwarya, designers Christopher Hrysanidis and Fern Arisara, and content creators @jontyknight, @jaidathecreator and @jassyyfizzle to name a few.
As part of the project, a team of established mentors were invited to guide and support the Next Gen creators, assisting in realising their concepts providing resources, tools, and budget management.
Speaking on the adidas Forum Newsroom and coinciding campaign, Wu-Kim said: “The campaign was all about celebrating an open mindset, and to do so by creating a safe space where people feel secure enough to act and behave in a genuinely open way – one that’s accepting, has no bias or judgement, so that new ground can be broken.
“For us, it was just about starting the sentence and letting our creator’s finish it,” he added.
The introduction of the adidas Forum Newsroom was accompanied by the unveiling of the adidas Originals Forum campaign, featuring celebrated Australian recording artists Mia Rodriguez and Genesis Owusu.
Genesis Owusu and Mia Rodriguez joined global talent Slowthai and Beabadoobee in a campaign celebrating cultural leaders who are redefining the style of tomorrow, channelling the iconic Forum franchise and its irreverent spirit of never being afraid to experiment with new ideas.
