Free Your Selves
Makeup ads have a hard time being authentically inspiring, complicated as they are by issues of vanity and manufactured beauty.
But Dermablend Professional is different. The brand’s corrective cosmetics are used by people with mild to severe skin conditions, and so its advertising can be unconflicted—even empowering. This isn’t about vanity; it’s about freeing oneself from ridicule and living a normal life.
New ads from Agence Tuxedo underscore this in a remarkable way. In emotional testimonials, two women, one semi-famous and one unknown, make a simple but in some ways audacious claim—that Dermablend’s concealing products don’t allow them to hide; they allow them to reveal who they truly are. This is counterintuitive but utterly heartfelt and believable.
These women “fight through the shock that their skin condition creates—people look at them and stop at their skin,” said Tuxedo creative director Ludwig Ciupka. “Covering themselves allows people to see through their imperfections and see who they are inside.”
TALENT: Both women come off as honest, confident, secure—and above all, courageous. “Cassandra, being a popular YouTube blogger, didn’t need me to make her feel secure, but Cheri did,” said Ciupka. “I made sure she felt comfortable and empowered.”
SOUND: The earlier Genest video used a Zoo Brazil track called “There Is Hope.” Ciupka went back to Zoo Brazil for the new spots and licensed an upcoming, unreleased track called “Heart’s a Legend.” “It felt right for the follow-up, for a more emotional campaign, while still giving it an edge,” he said.
MEDIA: The videos, aimed at women 15-45 with minor to severe skin imperfections, are running on YouTube and the Dermablend site. Genest stars in a new video, too, but of course, his skin condition was self-imposed. Emotionally, Bankson and Lindsay’s ads are the focus.
THE SPOTS:
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Client: Dermablend Professional
General Manager, U.S., Dermablend & Vichy: Sonya Sheth
Agency: Agence Tuxedo, Montreal
Art Director/Director: Ludwig we had planned 45 minutes per girls to allow them to talk and they took 5 minutes each and we were amazed at how much ‘real’ content we got from them.
Director of Client Services: Nancy Gendron
Manager, Client Services: Roxanne Champagne
Video Editing: Jean-Michel Simard
Production Company: Agence Tuxedo
Music: Zoo Brazil, “Heart’s a Legend” (Blackhole Recordings)
Talent: Cassandra Bankson, Cheri Lindsay, Rick Genest (aka Rico or Zombie Boy)
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