What does it take to be a man in these ever-changing times? Well, it’s one question US men’s clothing and accessories company Bonobos is asking in a clever new campaign.
In what ‘Run Like A Girl’ did for equality, the Bonobos ad arguably does for the ideals of masculinity.
The spot, called #EvolveTheDefinition, asks a raft of men of all persuasions, ethnicities and ages to define what masculinity means to them.
In an interesting twist, none of our protagonists find much kinship with masculinity’s struct definition.
The ad’s the work of collaborative agency Observatory and was directed by Michael Rohrbaugh. Check out the clever spot below:
Commenting on the ad, The Observatory’s creative director Joseph Saroufim said: “When we saw the limited and toxic definition of ‘masculine,’ we recognised it as a problem antithetical to our client’s brand proposition – fit for every man. When your reason for being is predicated on inclusiveness, you can’t ignore that many men in our society are made to feel like they don’t fit in.
“We decided to challenge that definition by interviewing individuals across a wide spectrum, including trans men and women who identify as masculine. Instead of asking men to fit into a preconceived notion of being a man, the goal is to use their voices to create a world where every man – and every person – fits.”
