Deejaying The Dawn Chorus
I am not a morning person.
Frankly, I do not trust anyone who says they are.
But Dorset Cereals was about to launch a new positioning declaring that ‘Life Begins at Breakfast’. A bold statement that required me, once again, to put my personal beliefs aside for the good of advertising.
Fortunately, there is one group of people who genuinely seem to believe it.
Breakfast radio hosts.
Not only do they have to start the day sounding impossibly energetic, it’s their job to coax the rest of the country into consciousness, helping us feel ready to face the day. Much like breakfast.
Inspired by the product’s rural roots, we imagined our own radio station, Dorset AM, broadcasting live from a tree somewhere in Britain’s idyllic countryside.
This was nature’s very own breakfast show. The dawn chorus, but with a better playlist.
The host was, naturally, a bird called Robin Wakeley. Chirpy and relentlessly upbeat, he was joined by his slightly more grounded squirrel sidekick, Acorn Andy.
The idea was pretty out there for Dorset Cereals. But by combining simple animation with puppetry, we found a way to make it feel completely true to the brand. Natural, wholesome, lovingly made and full of life.
We created an entire woodland community starting its day with the radio on. All 18 characters were handmade from organic British lambswool, sourced just a stone’s throw from where the cereal itself was made.
Our DJ also took over the brand’s Twitter feed, sharing shout-outs and a topical playlist every morning at 6.32am.
The film did not win any major awards. But The Grocer named it Cereal Ad of the Year. I never knew that was a thing, but I was delighted nonetheless.