It’s one month until the release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the first chapter of Star Wars Anthology, a series of movies independent from the Star Wars Saga, which focus on parallel characters and episodes in the Star Wars universe.
Temporally, Rogue One is between episode III and episode IV of the first pilot episode. The story is about a group of Rebels of The Resistance, who aim to steal the plans in order to cease the building of the Black Death, the Empire space station. Main characters are all new, but there will be a lot of references to every typical Star Wars character we know and love.
The movie, produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures, will come out to theaters on December 15th in Italy and on December 16th in USA.
The promotional campaign by sponsors
For Rogue One promotional campaign, Lucasfilm announced last summer its partnerships with five brands: Nissan, Gillette, Duracell, General Mills and Verizon. Lucasfilm General Director Lynwen Brennan told the press:
“We are extremely pleased to be working with such a remarkable group of promotional partners for Rogue One. This first in a series of Star Wars standalone films represents an exciting new era for both Star Wars and Lucasfilm, and the partners joining us on this exciting journey have each designed a stellar campaign capturing the spirit and camaraderie of Rogue One.“
As of today, three brands released three commercials that combine Rogue One essence into three different declinations. Let’s see them together:
Nissan Rogue: Battle-Tested
“At a remote test facility, the new Nissan Rogue gets battle-tested with the ultimate challenge: a simulated battlefield from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”
In the commercial we can see a girl – with hair very similar to Princess Leia – dressed as a Nissan tester facing stormtroopers, TIEs and AT-ACTs. In the last scene a new character from Rogue One appears. To test the front emergency brakes with pedestrians detection, the car stops just in time to let an unusual droid cross the street. This droid is K-2SO, an imperial droid with a peevish attitude, about to join the rebels squad.
Gillette: Every story has a face
“As Rogue One features the story behind the brave Rebels, Gillette’s story is about the power behind each and every guy’s face as he prepares for the challenges of the day.“
The commercial starts at the beginning of a battle, when Rebels troops are about to face the Empire army. Then everything stops and the time starts to go backwards. People manage to get back to the base when the alarm is raised, until the moment before, when they wake up and are about to get ready for the day. At this point the scene moves to a bathroom, with a normal boy in a modern house. The boy at the mirror is the same, with the same determination look in his eyes.
Duracell: How the Rebels Saved Christmas
“Brave rebels, a daring mission and one powerful gift. Duracell and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals are powering imaginations of brave rebels everywhere”
The commercial shows a little girl in the hospital, while trying to put the batteries into a R2-D2 toy. The new droid K-2S0 then comes, inviting her to a mission, and she transforms into Jyn Erso, the main character in Rogue One. Other kids join her playing gun toys while the medical staff enjoy watching them. The kids face many obstacles with the power of imagination, and finally get to the destination, which is the room of another ill child, stuck in bed, to whom they give her the toy as a gift.
Duracell commercial has the objective to raise funds for children hospitals and medical research.
Everyone of the three commercial applied Rogue One concept to their own products, in a smart and original way. Thanks to Rogue One, brands gave emotions and curiosities to people willing to watch the movie while raising their brand awareness.
We will soon publish an article which will give details about Rogue One: A Star Wars Story plot, where we will describe new characters from the movie coming out on December 15th!
