category finalist
chris@thecanalcollective.com
When Jergens entered the baby category after 128 years, craft became the proof point that heritage could evolve without losing its soul.
The campaign platform, A Familiar Kind of Feel-Good, was born from the strategic insight: The Trust to Trust Yourself. This required precision in tone: high-energy realism without chaos, warmth without sentimentality, polish without perfection.
LOOK & FEEL
We built a visual language rooted in emotional authenticity. We cast real families, including 22 babies + parents. And captured spontaneous, unscripted moments that couldn’t be manufactured.
In the opening of each video, we hung the camera around the parent’s neck to bring the chaotic feeling of new parenthood to life from the parent’s POV.
The camera often lingered past the “expected” end of a scene – baby knocking bottles off a shelf, an over-tired meltdown, suds on the face. The truth of early parenthood in action.
Transitions incorporated modern, social-native energy, e.g., products popping into frame and fluid table-top movement, ensuring the campaign lived seamlessly across social content while feeling modern and authentic.
Soft, clean lighting added elegance with soft shadows. Lamps and windows helped cue the time of day while giving a beautiful glow to the faces of the characters. We wanted the sweetness of the story to come through the lighting and set design. This way, the playful chaos and quirky drama could be shown through the movement and energy of the talent and camera. Together, it was balanced, relatable, and fun.
ART DIRECTION & VISUAL SYSTEM
We extended core brand equity into a baby-forward aesthetic without losing recognizability. The palette softened into creamy whites, muted pastels, and natural wood tones. Textures felt touchable. Illustrated animals and hearts were borrowed from packaging, animated, and repurposed throughout all content
Macro product shots highlighted rounded packaging edges and heart-shaped lotion dollops, reinforcing safety and tenderness through detail. Nothing felt staged. Every surface looked gently used, never sterile.
VOICE & SOUND DESIGN
To mirror the fast-paced reality of new parenthood in video, the voiceover was written as first-person stream-of-consciousness. Fast, funny, slightly anxious, relatable. Racing thoughts resolved into quiet reassurance.
Sound design highlighted micro-moments that grounded the work in reality. Fabric rustles, soft giggles.
WHAT WE CREATED
Across a two-day shoot:
• 2 locations
• 40 cast members (including 22 babies)
• 16 hero films
• 1,000+ stills
• Hundreds of short-form assets
Stills and motion were captured simultaneously to maintain tonal consistency across paid, owned, social, and retail.
RESULTS
The campaign translated authenticity into immediate demand. The prelaunch was gone in 24 hours, proving that when trust is felt, not claimed, it drives immediate demand.
