Always brave with its ad creatives, Tourism New Zealand has unveiled another great, albeit slightly bonkers spot, starring none other than the country’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern.
And who better to add the absurd element than master Kiwi comic and Flight Of The Conchords star, Rhys Darby.
The two-and-half minute long spot sees Los Angeles-based Darby contact the PM, alarmed that New Zealand is being left off world maps.
Darby peruses a number of maps looking for his beloved Land Of The Long White Cloud and declares: “New Zealand, where the bloody hell are ya” – a cheeky dig at the (in)famous Aussie campaign from a decade ago.
Admittedly, the campaign doesn’t exactly highlight New Zealand’s sights and spectacular scenery and even Darby compares it to a “half-eaten lamb chop”. Still, it’s deliriously funny and one of the ads of 2018. Check it out below:
CREDITS
Client: Tourism New Zealand
General manager of public relations: Lauren Vosper
Global brand and content manager: Brodie Reid
Director of trade, PR and major events: Rene de Monchy
Agency/production company: Augusto Group
LA director: James Anderson
NZ director: Michelle Walshe
Creative directors: Matt Sellars and Rich Robson
Executive producer: Cass Avery
Business director: Heath Davy
Account director: Lauren Oxnam
Line producer: Claire Campbell
Editor: Mariano Segedin
Post-production co-ordinator: Zoe Jones
Designers: James Davison and Kim Anderson
Motion artist: Shaun Madgewick
LA director of production: Grant Adams
LA gaffer: Skott Khuu
LA sound: Marc Stewart
NZ director of production: Olly Harris
NZ second camera operator: Warren Green
NZ gaffer: Spencer Locke-Bonney
NZ sound: Craig O’Reilly
NZ photographer: Graeme Murray