Vaseline: Skin
Vaseline sought to elevate its brand perception beyond a basic moisturizer, aiming to connect with consumers on a deeper, emotional level. The client wanted to reinforce the profound importance of skin care to a general audience, inspiring greater appreciation for their skin and, by extension, Vaseline's protective role.
Creative Idea
Celebrated skin's biological marvel through artful visuals, elevating Vaseline's protective role.
This campaign celebrated the human skin's incredible resilience and complexity through breathtaking visuals and a powerful voiceover, elevating Vaseline from a simple moisturizer to an essential protector of this amazing, vital organ, inspiring deeper appreciation and care.
Choreographing a Human Sea in the Icelandic Cold
A biological pivot for a commodity brand
Before this campaign, Vaseline was trapped in a thirty year decline, viewed primarily as a functional "greasy jelly" for minor scrapes. BBH New York orchestrated a massive strategic shift that moved the brand from "basic moisturizer" to "skin health expert." This repositioning was remarkably effective, reversing decades of stagnation to deliver double-digit sales growth globally within the first year. In the US market, the campaign successfully reclaimed Vaseline's position as the number one body lotion brand, driving a 20% increase in brand authority scores.
Freezing for the sake of art
To create the "Sea of Skin" film, director Ivan Zacharias of Stink Films opted for a tactile, organic approach over heavy digital manipulation. The production utilized 400 naked extras who were choreographed to move in unison, mimicking the behavior of pores and skin cells. While some sequences were filmed in Barcelona, the most dramatic shots were captured in Iceland. The actors endured freezing conditions to achieve the raw, biological aesthetic that defined the campaign. This "human sea" metaphor was designed to visualize the voiceover's message that skin is a living, breathing organ that is "waterproof and yet absorbent."
From naked portraits to the V seal
The campaign extended into a high profile PR event titled the Skin is Amazing exhibit. Celebrities including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Hilary Duff, and Dave Navarro posed for "skin portraits" to highlight the organ's natural beauty. These photographs were auctioned on eBay, raising over $100,000 for the Coalition of Skin Diseases. Beyond the visuals, the campaign left a permanent mark on the brand's identity by introducing the prominent "V" logo as a "seal of protection," a design element that remains a core part of Vaseline's global packaging today.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
Vaseline, with its long-standing heritage in skin protection, could credibly advocate for the fundamental importance of skin health.
Category
Skincare advertising often focused on superficial beauty or problem-solving, overlooking the profound biological wonder of the skin itself.
Customer
Consumers often took their skin for granted, unaware of its constant, vital work and the deep need for its protection and care.
Culture
A cultural shift towards holistic well-being and a deeper appreciation for the body's natural resilience made this message resonate.
Company
Vaseline, with its long-standing heritage in skin protection, could credibly advocate for the fundamental importance of skin health.
Category
Skincare advertising often focused on superficial beauty or problem-solving, overlooking the profound biological wonder of the skin itself.
Strategy:
Elevate the inherent value of the human body to position daily care as a profound act of respect.
Customer
Consumers often took their skin for granted, unaware of its constant, vital work and the deep need for its protection and care.
Culture
A cultural shift towards holistic well-being and a deeper appreciation for the body's natural resilience made this message resonate.
Strategy:
Elevate the inherent value of the human body to position daily care as a profound act of respect.
Strategy Technique
Make the Invisible Visible
The campaign highlighted the complex, often unappreciated biological functions of skin. It transformed abstract cellular processes into a dramatic, awe-inspiring visual and auditory experience.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Exhibit the Truth
The campaign visually and audibly demonstrated the skin's incredible functions and resilience. It used abstract and human imagery to reveal the profound biological truth of our largest organ.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
The campaign's craft is exceptional in its audacious visual storytelling, using the human body as a metaphor for the skin's complex functions, elevated by stunning cinematography and powerful art direction.
The stunning wide shots, macro details, and dynamic movement across diverse landscapes create a visually rich and impactful experience that elevates the narrative.
The audacious use of hundreds of naked bodies in various natural and industrial settings creates a powerful, symbolic visual language that is both vulnerable and grand.
The meticulous integration of the human 'skin' into environments, from abstract textures to epic landscapes and urban structures, is flawlessly executed.
The subtle yet impactful soundscape, combined with the resonant voiceover and evocative music, significantly enhances the emotional depth and narrative power.
The magic truly comes from the synergy of cinematography, art direction, and the sheer scale of the production, creating a profound and memorable visual poem about the human body.
