The Rant ("I Am Canadian")
Molson Canadian2000
The Rant ("I Am Canadian") is a 2000 60-second cinema and television commercial for Molson Canadian, created by Bensimon Byrne D'Arcy.
The line
I am Canadian!
Why it works
A polite young man in a flannel shirt steps up to a cinema microphone and, building from a bashful murmur to a roar over "Land of Hope and Glory", knocks down one Canadian stereotype after another before bellowing, "My name is Joe, and I am Canadian!" Written by Glen Hunt at Bensimon Byrne D'Arcy, directed by Kevin Donovan and performed by Jeff Douglas, it played in cinemas for two weeks, then made its TV debut as a single spot in the Academy Awards' final break on March 26, 2000. It is studied as the textbook case of a brand claiming national identity: Joe performed live at NHL arenas, more than 40,000 Canadians submitted their own rants online, and the earned coverage was valued at $8.8 million. Within two months Molson Canadian's market share had climbed two points. It won the Cassies Grand Prix in 2001 and a Bronze Lion at Cannes, and business professors went on to teach it as a case.
Techniques
- Transfer Wraps the beer in Canadian national identity as an ordinary guy knocks down stereotypes and roars his nationality, borrowing patriotic pride for the brand.
- Plain folks A polite everyman called Joe in a flannel shirt speaks for the nation, making the brand feel as ordinary and proud as its drinkers.
- Participation Invites Canadians to join in, with tens of thousands submitting their own rants online and Joe performing live at NHL arenas.
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