Here in New York, the thermometer is flirting with 90, so it seems like the perfect time to talk about this Cruzan Rum campaign featuring people enjoying a breezy tropical island and good rum. Nadav Kander shot the images for Fallon in Minneapolis, working with Dave Damman, who at the time was group creative director.
.
All photos by Nadav Kander for Fallon and Cruzan Rum.
.
The ads were a significant change for Cruzan, Dave told me in an email interview. “The previous work was all about the bottle, nothing else,” he explained. For this creative departure, the agency chose to base the campaign on the rum’s home turf of St. Croix. “The brand has been a part of the St. Croix community for over 200 years,” Dave said. “It and the island are one.”
In fact, Communication Arts took note of this strategy in an article on the ads that came out when the campaign launched:
“In a world full of liquor brands without a history, the Legendary Rum of St. Croix campaign uses 240 years of island legends, heritage and imagery to remind consumers that Cruzan is an authentic, premium rum. The creative team steered clear of the expected rum imagery and instead created a mystique around the brand—keeping one foot in the past, and one in the present—that romanticizes the island’s long history of making and drinking rum.”
I asked Dave about how he and his team at Fallon chose the photographer. Was it a particular image of Nadav’s that clinched it?
“It’s not about a style of photography or a particular image,” he replied. “It’s about an understanding of what needs to be communicated—and Nadav is the best.”
I also asked him about what the shoot was like.
“Believe it or not, it was a lot of shoot-from-the-hip, guerrilla-style shooting,” he said. “We treated the shoot as an organic exploration, using the comps as guideposts. Sounds laidback, but it is a producer’s nightmare. [Producer] Tom Mason is the best, and we needed the best. We shot a ton of great images, but only a few survived into the ads. All the talent was found on location.”
.
.
The campaign’s first wave launched at a special Cruzan-branded Dave Matthews concert in West Palm Beach, along with print spreads and outdoor in South Florida and Southern California.
The ads may have been a success, but looking back, Dave can think of at least one thing he would have done differently.
“I would have left Nadav on the island alone for another week, and would have loved to see what he came up with,” he said. “He’s a fantastic collaborator, but his private work is amazing.”
.
.
