Fastlane & Asha films
Client Nokia | Agency Hugo & Cat
Role Creative Lead
The problem
Nokia were struggling to connect with audiences in emerging markets, and their new product launches felt generic and blandly ‘global’. But our brief was to do more of the same old product-led UI videos that customers were turning away from.
The insight
Combining universal lifestyle themes with authentic local culture is the best way to reach a globally connected young audience.
The response
I sold in a lifestyle-focused approach that told a story around the phones, and gave Nokia content campaigns that reached an audience across EMEA, LATAM and APAC.
To make sure the content was engaging and authentic, we street-cast amateurs from target markets and shaped the product narratives around their interests to show the products through the eyes of people our customers could identify with.
For extra local flavour, we also sourced soundtracks from up-and-coming musical artists. This gave the campaign a strong PR angle we were able to leverage for earned coverage.
The approach was scaled from the Fastlane feature release to the Asha device range, and the later X2 device launch.
The results
Our content delivered impressions and page views far exceeding Nokia’s benchmarks, with an increased ROAS across all campaigns we activated the strategy on.
Our look and feel was adapted by Nokia as the default identity for the Asha and X2 product ranges.
Business impact
Our collaboration with Nokia grew from a one-off product launch to a long-term creative partnership, delivering 10x of the initial project revenue over three years.
Our strategy helped the global Nokia team strengthen their relationships with local markets, reducing TOW on the client side during stressful product launch periods.
My role
Leading the development of a strategic approach that prioritised emotional storytelling over rational product features.
Concepting stories that told the product stories in a relatable way for our target audiences.
Scripting, storyboarding, casting and choosing locations in the pre-production phase.
Working with in-house producers to produce complex location shoots on time and on budget.
Giving creative direction to directors and photographers on story and style.
Overseeing international shoots alongside art directors, directors and local production crews.
Signing off edits.
Writing digital campaign assets.
Working with Nokia's global and local-market social and PR teams to activate content campaigns.
Awards
Platinum
Muse Creative Awards
Silver
W3 Awards
Bronze
WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival