Wunderman Thompson: Campari Group’s Fellini Forward

In 1984, Campari – the iconic Italian liqueur – was one of the few brands to collaborate with legendary Italian director Federico Fellini. More recently, in partnership with Wunderman Thompson and Hill + Knowlton Strategies, Campari wanted to continue to celebrate his legacy with a forward-thinking project that blends creativity and innovation in the cinema industry with cutting-edge technology.

Wunderman Thompson used AI tools to analyse and extract data from past Fellini transcripts to understand patterns in language and descriptive detail. This analysis made it possible to bring the creative genius of Federico Fellini back to life.

The agency carried out visual analysis of the director’s full repertoire, including camera movement and facial emotion, and consulted with original members of Fellini’s crew, who provided key insights into the maestro’s oeuvre. They then created their own scriptwriting and pre-visualisation AI tools that combined these learnings to leverage Fellini’s creative DNA and construct a piece of cinema that felt authentically “Felliniesque”.

The team chose to accept or amend the AI’s suggestions, working together to build and adjust the final script. This seamless collaboration between human creative minds and AI shows how the emotional and the data-driven can come together to spark an interesting debate on the role of AI in the future of cinema.

Through this project, Campari aims to continue its founders’ legacy of innovation and creativity and inspire future and existing generations of creatives across the globe to unlock their own passions.

The film is available on Amazon Prime and has captured major press around the world, including in Elle and Vanity Fair, and gained over 2 billion impressions in the first week after launching.

The campaign won Gold at the ADCI – Italian Directors Club Awards for Digital & Mobile A.I & Voice Activation, PR – Events, Brand Experiences and ‘stunt’ and Integrated Campaign alongside Best Use of Experimental Tech, Best Use of Data and Tech as Part of a Campaign at the Campaign Tech Awards.