A boy in a hoodie spraying graffiti on a wall may not be welcome in many neighbourhoods around the world but to some advertisers he is a potent symbol of counter culture to be exploited like any other.
For the new FujiFilm ad devised by Dubai-based marketing agency McCollins Media, counter-culture symbols such as boys in hoodies are used to show that the X10 camera has street cred and is used to express the user's individuality.
“This campaign will speak volumes to people who understand and value creativity and expression,” said Keitaro So, general manager of Fujifilm Electronics Imaging Division for Middle East and North Africa region.
“To people not so interested in this artistic aspect, it will still be a visually enticing advertisement with a unique take on photography.”
Manjeet Varerkar, who designed the campaign, says urban street culture and surrealist paintings that embody an outpouring of creativity were his inspiration. The vintage look of the camera, priced at Dh2,500 and launched in November last year, has also helped him devise the campaign.
The 24-year-old, who grew up in Dubai, traces the idea for the campaign back to a trip to Australia in 2007, his first trip abroad apart from flights home to India.
During his time Down Under he says he was greatly influenced by street performers such as musicians, whom he had not seen in the UAE.
His current ad campaign was a way to celebrate this urbanness.
“We wanted to target a limited number of people but target those persons who are hard core fans [of photography],” Mr Varerkar said.
The X10 camera campaign centered around the counter-culture movement is part of a series of identities that Fujifilm and McCollins Media aim to create for the X-series range.
It will also “differentiate this model from all the other cameras in the market,” Mr So said.
