Remastering a masterpiece – the Bain’s Whisky TVC story
Strategic digital marketing consultancy Hoorah is proud to be the agency behind the recently released #WhiskyRemastered TV commercial (TVC) for Bain’s Whisky. With a brief to create a campaign for the premium, multi-award-winning brand that would have relevance for a new and wider consumer audience, Hoorah once again turned to music as the pillar on which to base the new commercial.
The final ad brings AI, CGI, and advanced sound technology together to recreate a Miriam Makeba performance of “Pata Pata”. The unmistakable opening bars of the song transition into the remastered version, performed by Sun-EL Musician and Msaki. Combining the music with a complex process to bring Mama Africa back to life required a body double and transposing mapped images of Makeba’s face over that of the actress.
Working with Robin Kohl of Kohlworx as well as the Miriam Makeba Foundation, Hoorah brought in SAMA-winning contemporary artists Sun-EL Musician and Msaki who brought a modern twist to the song, whilst showing deep respect for the original version.
Superbly lit to match archive footage of an original performance, the TVC is testimony to the vision and hard work of Hoorah and the entire technical and production team behind the project.
The ad builds on Hoorah’s previous TVC for Bain’s – titled Whisky Made To Music – which helped sell out the limited edition, double matured in first-fill bourbon casks, shortly after its release.
The passion of Bain’s master whisky distiller, Andy Watts and his goal to challenge the traditional perceptions around whisky was the inspiration behind the latest #WhiskyRemastered TVC and resonated with the agency’s own quest always to make the best better.
In brainstorming the germ of the idea, the Hoorah team looked for a South African musical virtuoso with an iconic song. “The challenge was to find a way somehow to remaster the music at the same time as creating something visually outstanding,” says Hoorah co-founder Shaune Jordaan.
As a digital agency with extensive expertise in using modern technology, they finally came up with what they – and the client – were looking for. Few tunes in the South African playbook have a more immediately identifiable intro than Miriam Makeba’s ‘Pata Pata’ and so the germ took root and the creative process began.
Says Jordaan, “There were so many elements that we had to get just right in order to retain the integrity of the original song when in fact the entire object of the exercise was to remaster it, so we really took our time with the project. It was important for us that the end product would convey the authenticity of both the artist and the song, and of course, most importantly, that of the Bain’s Whisky brand.”
Added Jordaan, “Bain’s Whisky deserved nothing less than perfection, and we really hope that this #whiskyremastered campaign captures the essence of the elegance of the product and will have real resonance with a modern, discerning audience.”