Undoubtedly one of the biggest issues facing agencies today is how to deal with fossil fuel clients – difficult to say no to the big dollars on offer versus the prickly PR/moral dilemma of having a planet killer on the books.
One guy who’s clearly had enough of it all is American director, comic and Academy Award nominee, Adam McKay.
Through his production company Hyperobject Industries, McKay has just released an acerbic ad skewering big polluting oil companies and their advertising claims.
McKay takes particular aim at US oil giant Chevron during the spot that starts harmless enough before using predictable advertising tropes to brutally rubbish the oil giants and their greenwashing claims.
At one point the ad’s voiceover man even compares the damage done to the planet to a “hellish George Miller film” (a nod to the Aussie director and his iconic, dystopian Mad Max films.)
Commenting on the reasons behind his work, McKay said: “The idea for making this video joking about how Chevron, along with all the other oil companies, are murdering us every day, came from the fact that Chevron and all the other oil companies are murdering us every day.”
Watch the powerful spot below:
