Adam Gilchrist’s tequila ad shoot is an experience like no other I have experienced before….and probably will never experience again!
Initially, B&T was invited to interview Gilly—a childhood hero—and Emotive boss Simon Joyce about the new tequila brand, El Arquero, the creative concept of ‘We’re all in it tequila’, and a take a quick look behind the scenes at how it was being produced.
As it turned out, the filming was a couple of hours behind schedule, and they needed more bodies to create a party vibe for the shoot.
I probably learnt more about the craft of advertising in the next four hours than I had in 10 years as an advertising journalist.
The ‘Weʼre all in this tequilaʼ tagline came to life in a hero film that blurred the line between shoot and soiree.
Led by Gilchrist, the film opened with an apology to Australians for the harsh tequilas of the past—and don’t we all know it—before introducing El Arquero as a smoother spirit made for sharing and Aussie palates.
What made this shoot special is that friends, family, business partners and collaborators joined Gilly to celebrate what the brand stands for: connection and community.
Even Emotiveʼs own team features in the spot; the agency has partnered with Gilchrist and El Arquero to bring the brand to market via an incubator model.
Gilchrist has starred in many ads during his career, including for Kayo Sports, where he is a cricket commentator, Western Australia tourism, homeloans.com.au and Castrol.
When asked what he enjoyed most about the El Arquero shoot, he said: “When you’ve done so many ads, you can walk away from some going, ‘Well, that was okay, that ticked the box and got the job done’. And then there’s others that you walk away from and it feels like there’s been a sprinkling of magical fairy dust,” he said.
“I left that shoot buzzing. I loved every bit of it, from the incorporation of award-winning directors and production teams to award-winning creatives ,whose staff are so committed to making this work by filling up numbers and just stepping in. And then you add your family, founders, friends and certain trade media people hanging around and jumping in.
“It was a 12-hour shoot day, and there was a lot of standing around for a lot of people, but the energy never dropped.”
That was certainly the experience of this ‘extra’. There was a lot of patience, standing around, retaking scenes over and over again.
There was also plenty of faux dancing and some questionable moves, not least from this awkward reporter.
What was impressive is the ability of the paid talent to put it on and draw you in with their energy.
Learn more: Gilly’s ad, the creative conevpt and Emotive’s role
Just as impressive was Gilly’s role as the star. The pressure to get his lines right was relentless. Although he played a few loose shots with his some of his efforts, Gilly’s persistence and calmness under pressure was rewarded.
Emotive chief executive Simon Joyce described his performance as “truly world class”.
“The energy that he bought to set and the desire just to keep pushing. Sometimes, if you’ve got headline talent that’s a little bit on edge, it can permeate right through the shoot,” Joyce said. “The opposite happened here. Gilly’s performance and his energy just lifted the whole place.”
It wasn’t just Gilly who turned heads. One of the actors, Diego (above)—quite possibly the most stereotypical Mexican man B&T has encountered—brought his guitar and Mariacha tunes to lift the set after a long day.
Gilly agrees that Diego could pass as a Mexican version of David Boon, but he caveats that by saying that he would need to send ‘Boonie’ a bottle of El Arquero to see if his singing skills are up to scratch.
“Diego was the heart and soul of that day; he kept us upbeat and thriving,” Gilchrist pointed out. “You couldn’t script a better character for that role.”
Other talent also brought vibes, including Simone Drape, whose husband Justin was creative director and co-writer.
Meanwhile, the chihuahua was quite possibly the best behaved dog anyone could ask, staying perfectly calm—if not bored—under the intense heat of studio lighting and the noise and chaos of a film set.
The brilliant production team, led by Wellcom director Chris Hill, kept shooting tight and on point, leaving no leaf (or camera angle) unturned.
“The script allowed me to create a world for Gilly that felt both sophisticated and playful, a space where the art of ‘sippingʼ tequila could be celebrated as it should. We had a lot of fun curating an intriguing cast of stylish characters whose energy and personalities definitely elevated the scene,” Hill said.
“The overall styling, tone and atmosphere is unexpected but also authentic to Gillyʼs personality and where he wants to position El Arquero. It was a true pleasure working together to craft his charismatic performance through the choreographed shots and moments I wanted to hit within the scene”.
The El Arquero launch adopts a three pronged go to market media strategy. The TVCs will run on Foxtel Media and will be supported by more than 20 film and still assets for social media, as well as earned media storytelling across food and drink, sport and lifestyle. The PR elements all complement the hero assets and Gillyʼs founder story and are being rolled out by Hot Shot PR.
“When we see us launch from 7 October, you’ll see us go out with the hero, then we’ll start dropping in these other pieces on social. The ambition is always really simple, it’s a cumulative effect,” Joyce explained. “You will see a little bit more about the characters on the TVC and how they know Gilly on social media (see above).
“If you remember the old days where we used to take the hero TVC and just change the aspect ratio and bang it on social media. If it feels super addy, and is not going to work as well. So you need to have that combination of assets and content that feels more social first, and then you start thinking about how it works right through the funnel.”
The partnership with Foxtel Media is particularly important to Gilchrist, who has been part of the Foxtel family for nearly a decade since hanging up his gloves. Ads on Foxtel and Kayo will run across multiple formats, from six second bumpers all the way up to 60-second hero spots.
Joyce points out that there are several Easter eggs’ in the creative for all of the cricket nerds out there; not least of all, one being held by the trade press.
El Arquero is now available online at elarquero.com and at independent bottle shops and Liquorland. It will be available in Dan Murphyʼs nationally from late October.
Credits
Client: El Arquero
Adam Gilchrist, Mel Gilchrist, Tina Fitzgerald, Dan Fitzgerald, Stephen Atkinson, Eddie Brook and John Eastham.
Creative and Production: Emotive
CEO & Founder: Simon Joyce
Executive Strategy Partner: Sebastian Revell Creative Director & copywriter: Justin Drape Copywriter: Michael Dawson
Group Creative Director: Darren Wright
Creative Director: Paul Sharp
Creative Director: Rupert Taylor
Earned Creative: Alister Hill
Head of Design: Daniel Mortensen Senior Designer: Chris Cooper
Senior Social Strategist: Elly Brand
Social Content Creator: Remy Brand
Head of Production: Hayley-Ritz Pelling
Senior Integrated Producer: Esmé Fisher
Business Director: Zoé Hartas
Photographer: Nick Bowers
Retouching: Mark Sterne
PR: Hot Shot PR: Stefanie Rezzara
Production Partner: Wellcom
Director: Christopher Hill
Managing Director: Marnie Darren
Creative Director: Oliver Hammerton
Head of Production: Braedy Neal
Senior Producer: Christina Kouvaras
Senior Producer: Justine Moyle
Post Producer: Sann Mehta
Production Assistant: Olivia
Directors Assistant: Imogen
Grist Editor: James Ashbolt
Colourist: Alina Bermingham
Online: Eden Studios
Music: Deep Faith (Dan Stricker and Byron Spencer) & Sony ATV Sound Design: Electric Sheep Music
EP: Kate Stenhouse
Audio Engineer: Georgia Collins
Production Crew:
1st AD: Richard McGrath
2nd AD: Frankie Noble-Shelton
DOP: Alex Serafini
1st AC: Oli Braslin
2nd AC: Ari Shanavaz
Gaffer: Matt Russell
Best Boy: Beau Moulson
Grip: Sean Thomas
Grip Assist Paul Mason
Steadicam: Jason Rodrigues
Sound Recordist: Nathanial Watkins
Studio Assist: Tahi Williams
Art Director/Stylist: Jo Ayling
Art Director/Stylist: Janai Anselmi
Art Assist: Sean Ali
Art/Wardrobe: Assist Bea Giddy
Stand By props: Andy Parkes
HMU: Margo Regan
HMU Assist: Danielle Walker
HMU Assist: Charlotte McLeod
