The Raise Hells campaign seeks to “celebratate the eclectic and inclusive spirit” of the brewery’s birthplace, and features Londoners that reflect the unconventional “anything goes” spirit of Camden.
The adverts have been teased on Camden Town’s social media accounts since Monday (4 September), with the full length 30 and 10-second commercials set to play throughout September exclusively on ITV.
The films were created by the AB InBev-owned brewery in partnership with Sir John Hegarty and his incubator company, The Garage Soho, which helps start-up businesses grow.
The ads are directed by Sam Washington and feature monologues from four characters, each of whom “exemplify Camden’s fiercely unique spirit”: an actor, a drag artist, a visually impaired woman, and a blues guitarist.
A celebration of location
Camden Town founder and CEO Jasper Cuppaidge said that the campaign was a homage to “a place that constantly inspires us”.
“This campaign is an incredibly exciting and landmark moment for Camden Town Brewery,” he said. “Camden is not only our home and namesake, it’s a place that constantly inspires us – from the culture, to the history, to the incredible people living and working within the borough. We wanted to celebrate this place – our home – by asking our friends and the whole of London to Raise Hells with us.”
Sir John Hegarty added: “To become an iconic brand, you have to at some point create broadcast advertising. Celebrating the power of broadcast to widen and engage audiences, while simultaneously using digital to deepen people’s experience of the story we’re telling, will bring Camden – the place and the brewery – to a whole new audience.”
The adverts are also accompanied by a two-minute film entitled Camden Celebration, which stars the award-winning Camden-born actor Ashley Zhangazha delivering an ode to Camden from the stage of The Camden Roundhouse. This will air on ITV on 8 September.
Distinct characters
Casting and production for the adverts was undertaken by Royle Productions. Head of production Sarah Marcon said that the set had been made deliberately minimalist to allow the characters' personalities to shine.
“We were looking for distinctive characters who could bring their own unique energy to the scripts,” she said. “Our casting process was lengthy and we interviewed many interesting people before whittling it down to the four strongest personalities.
The sheer diversity we encountered reflects Camden’s rich identity and soul. Wanting the characters to shine, we opted for a stripped-back set-up and minimal styling.”
Last month, Camden released its seasonal summer lager, Strawberry Hells Forever, made with more than 300kg of strawberries.
The fruit was picked in June by Camden staff and volunteers at a farm in Essex.
In July, the brewery opened the doors to its new Enfield brewery site, capable of producing up to 400,000hl of beer per year.
The new brewhouse can operate 24 hours a day and could increase Camden’s capacity by up to 2,000%.