Droga5 London celebrates ‘power of creativity’ in enigmatic film debut for Mini

Car advertisers are producing some rum stuff these days – maybe connected to the seismic changes taking place in the industry. They’re either trying to sell something new – “lifestyle” choices as in BMW’s new campaign from Serviceplan yesterday – or maybe some of them don’t know what they’re selling.

Mini is owned by BMW and it’s produced a new campaign from new agency Droga5 London – although D5 says it isn’t a campaign – featuring a short film, Nimic, with Matt Dillon and Daphne Patakia directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, that’s doing the rounds of film festivals. So the rest of us can’t see it, yet anyway. How many people attend film festivals? Could be a lot but that doesn’t seem to be the point.

Mini says: “Nimic was made in partnership with Mini as part of their ongoing commitment to celebrating the power of creativity. Thinking outside the box has always driven Mini’s engagement as their patronage of Nimic demonstrates once again.”

Had Mini committed to creativity it committed to D5? Has ‘engagement’ become of those much-beloved marketing weasel words?

The 12-minute film features a A professional cellist (a moody Dillon) who encounters a stranger on the subway with unexpected and far-reaching ramifications on his life.

Anyway, here’s the trailer.

Owner BMW went the film route some years back with its ‘The Hire’ films featuring Clive Owen (who looks rather like Dillon) as the driver.

So we’re supposed to be intrigued and, indeed, we are.

MAA creative scale: pending.