Sealect Tuna Elevator Campaign Inspires Chicken Of The Sea Advertisement

Weight management is on the minds of many people after working through the feasts of the holiday season. With that in mind the Tuna Elevator viral ads continue to appeal to women and men around the world.

Office worker drools in Sealect Elevator television commercial

Sealect Elevator

To the sounds of a sultry saxophone drooling men watch a scantily clad woman walk through the office. She saunters over to the elevator and smiles at her colleagues as the door closes. As soon as they’re out of sight the music stops. She loses the smile, grimaces and breathes out, releasing her belly and ripping her tight skirt. A man’s low voice says in Thai, “Introducing Low Fat Sealect Tuna. Suck In No More”.

In the two 15 second sequels the woman shares the elevator with a male colleague going to floor 91. To keep up the facade of slimness she’s forced to hold her breath.

The three ads are featured at the advertising page on Thai Union’s Fisho site. Elevator 1: The Walk to the Elevator features as a 1 mb WMV file. The 15 second ads are available as 556 kb and 560 kb files. Sealect is a brand of canned tuna produced by Thai Union Manufacturing Company, one of the largest canneries in the world. The 30 second ad is also available as a 4.71 mb mpg videoat Ads of the World.

Advertising agency, Dentsu Young & Rubicam, Bangkok, included in their creative team Piya Boontarig, executive creative director, Trong Tuntivejakul, creative director, Chockechai Kasemsripitak, copywriter, Kirasak Tungkanopas, art director, and Nareerat Aphiphunya, agency producer.

Filming was shot by director Thanonchai Sornsrivichai via Phenomena, Bangkok.

‘Elevator’ won gold at the 2001 Top Advertising Contest of Thailand Awards (TACT) and was a finalist in the London International Advertising Awards.

For a Chinese version of the ad view the 4.832 mpeg video at Chaiyo Productions, Bangkok.

Chicken of the Sea Elevator

Five years later Chicken of the Sea, an American company fully owned by Thai Union since 2000, has adapted the elevator commercial for Western eyes. A slim woman, belly exposed, walks through the office to the elevator. Once the men are out of sight she breaths out, releasing her belly. However this time the skirt doesn’t rip. The ad finishes with an upbeat voiceover, “Chicken of the sea! Low fat, preservative free!” and a jingle, “What’s the best tuna? Chicken of the Sea!”

The US ad was released in August 2005. In Chicken of the Sea press release that month John Signorino, Chicken of the Sea president said, “The new creative combines humor with growing concerns about weight management – something many people can identify with. I was surprised when my wife showed me the amusing commercial her friend sent her on the Internet. She didn’t know it was the commercial our parent company was airing in Asia. After that, I knew the creative would resonate in the United States.”

The ad is available to view as a 778 kb flash animation at Chicken of the Sea. Online viewers are encouraged to visit pages relating to health and weight management. Adjab features the Chicken of the Sea spot as a 930 kb quicktime file. Chicken of the Sea has streamed versions of the American and Thai ads available with their August press release and FAQ pdf file available in the 2005 Press Kit. The ad was directed by Montol Arrayungkul for ad agency Chaiyo Productions, based in Thailand.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 27th, 2005 at 7:50 pm and is filed under Inspiration, TV Ads Cinema and Online Videos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.