| Title | Guardium |
| Agency | Havas London |
| Campaign | Guardium |
| Advertiser | Reckitt Benckiser |
| Brand | Guardium |
| Date of First Broadcast/Publication | 2019 / 9 |
| Business Sector | OTC Medicines (Pain Relievers, Cold & Flu, ...) |
| Tagline | A knight’s tale: Guardium provides around the clock superhero protection |
| Story | A knight's tale: Guardium urges heartburn sufferers to stop horsing around when it comes to heartburn relief in new campaign Many of us are all too familiar with that uncomfortable feeling after a late-night take-away. Heartburn and indigestion brand, Guardium, have broken the mould of pharma advertising with their comical new campaign, which promises an instant solution to heartburn and acid reflux. A fantastical paradox featuring an extraordinary knight and horse duo unusually situated within a mundane office space, global healthcare giants, Reckitt Benckiser, have created a modern, bright piece of advertising in collaboration with Havas. The campaign, directed by Simon Cole at Mad Cow films, not only features a knight in shining armour: it also gives prominence to an iconic CG fireman, created by Smoke & Mirrors, with the remainder of the post-production completed at Big Buoy. Our human protagonist, Julia, goes about her day as she usually would, as she explains to Colin, a co-worker who shares her incessant need for heartburn protection, the power of Guardium. Whether at the park, on a run or even tucked up in bed, the elephant (or horse) in the room, which remains invisible to everybody else, offers a slapstick metaphor to 24-hour protection. Dave Mygind, Creative Director on the project, comments, “we’re really excited to launch this new brand with a kickass knight and a bit of a giggle. It’s disruptive for the category of ‘more serious’ heartburn, and as a new brand we’re hoping it’ll grab the right attention.” Commenting on the CG character and its animation, Smoke & Mirrors’ Head of CG, Willie Torres, mentions that “maintaining the stereotypical image of a fireman, was key”, whilst “breathing new life into the animation” was an important stepping stone towards the development of a new brand. Jenna Le Noury, Executive Producer at Big Buoy, adds, “It was wonderful to see the character of the Knight and the Horse develop and the relationship between the two evolve. Being on set to offer VFX supervision allowed us to pre-determine the ways in which we could enhance these elements in post. The entire tone of the film is super cool, playful and fun and that’s exactly what Charlotte, Dave, Simon and the whole team brought to every aspect of the production process!” |
| Media Type | Television |
| Length | |
| Production Company | Mad Cow Films |
| Post Production | Big Buoy |
| Creative Director | Dave Mygind |
| Agency TV Producer | Charlotte Lawrence |
| Assistant Producer | Debbie Ragasa |
| Director | Simon Cole |
| Production Company Producer | Jonas Blanchard |
| CGI | Smoke & Mirrors |
| Animation | Willie Torres |
| CG Producer | Lonneke Bertens |
| Lead VFX Artist | David |
| Flame Artist | Richard |
| Flame Artist | Eileen Chan Junior |
| Nuke Artist | Tommy Coulter-Liston |
| Colorist | Mark Horrobin |
| Executive Producer | Jenna le Noury |
| Sound | Jungle Sound |
| Ben Leeves |