The ‘cinematic’ advert trend continues as Powerade enters Olympic mode

As Powerade drops one of the most impressively cinematic adverts in recent memory, we reflect on a year of decidedly widescreen campaigns.

We’re bound to see a fair few more Olympic Games adverts in the coming months, but Powerade has set the standard with its campaign featuring Simone Biles, the Olympic gold medalist, who takes centre stage heralding the brand's Paris Games strategy.

In the ad titled “The Vault,” Biles is portrayed amidst a whirlwind of media chatter, yet she remains undeterred, focusing solely on her vault routine while reflecting on her personal journey. 

Directed by Kim Gehrig of Somesuch, this captivating advertisement was brought to life through the creative efforts of WPP Open X.

Alongside Biles, Powerade's campaign features a stellar line-up of international athletes, including Mathilde Gros from France, Harrie Lavreysen from the Netherlands, Linda Motlhalo from South Africa, Ji So-Yun from South Korea, and Tyler Wright from Australia, among others.

Powerade Gold, a limited-edition offering, will be hitting shelves coinciding with the Paris Games, set to commence on July 26.

Nailing the cinematic trend

With adverts made on a shoestring budget gaining viral acclaim, and homespun YouTube channels gaining world-beating views, the choice to ‘go cinematic’ might seem a little off-trend. 

Powerade’s advert, however, puts the ‘break’ in ‘commercial break’, focusing on an athlete’s ‘pause’ to clear her mind as she attempts a tricky routine. Amid the action, the mood is eerily calm and quiet as her life flashes before her, with clips of the struggles and support that helped get her into prime athletic shape.

Brands dream of reaching these peaks of engagement in their advertising, and much of this is owed to the decidedly tasteful direction, camera work, sound design and crisp editing. 

The formula is fairly well-trodden, but the execution – like the performance it captures – is flawless.

Such cinematic feats, however, have been popping up more and more of late: