"If you travel, you know"
If you’ve been watching any Hulu shows this summer (Younger is hilarious), you may have seen some particularly amusing travel ads pop-up during the commercial breaks that happen to be directed by the one and only YG16 winners Mathery. And before I even knew Mathery was behind the art direction I thought, “this is great advertising and now I want the Delta Amex card.” Instead of immediately pressing the mute button, I was engaged, laughing, and considering applying for the credit card, so they totally nailed it.
After realizing Mathery directed these colorful and FOMO inducing travel ads, we needed to know more– we discussed the campaign details and learned about their best travel memories together.
And if you need more Mathery, last summer we interviewed them about their exclusive Instagram photo romance story– Felicitazioni– that you will definitely want to read because sources say the sequel is coming soon.
What was your experience directing the Delta Skymiles AmEx campaign?
We fell in love with this campaign from the moment the agency shared the VO of each video with us. In this project, differently from what you would expect from such big brands, we were given incredible creative freedom in every aspect, including narrative, overall art direction, locations, and each character’s look and story.
We have put so much heart and passion into this campaign since the treatment/pitch phase. Sometimes treatments take ages, but this time (even when we both had COVID!!!), it all came up so quickly because the idea was so good and inspiring. We packed all the ideas we had without being afraid of being “too much,” and the agency loved it!
The scripts we came up with following the VO haven’t changed at all from the treatment, and it’s very special from a creative point of view because it means that no compromises have been made since there was total trust between agency and client.
Mancationers, Snowbirds, Family Trippers, Tchotchkeepers and Travel Foodies... how did you bring these humorous storylines to life?
Each "archetraveler’s" name and VO were already set by the agency’s copywriters and creatives, and we loved them so much we came up with the idea of a three dimensional postcard look.
Postcards are always aspirational, and they have the power to communicate an iconic moment of a trip. Each video opening and composition represents the summary of each Archetraveler’s experience.
Our protagonists are portrayed in the middle of the action in a frozen pose to capture the momentum of their travel experience. The camera opens on the scene with a soft movement (tracking or drifting) to then settle into its final position, perfectly framing all the characters in the environment– the funnier the face, the better the effect, of course!
So, how does Mathery set out to nail fun and entertaining advertising that people don’t want to mute? Do you have any creative tips to share?
There are no guided tips– in our work whether it is advertising or a personal project, we put 100% of ourselves into it, almost as if it’s an art project where every detail is important. We see every job as an opportunity to create something special and be proud of as creatives. Of course, knowing that people like you are actually enjoying it means a lot because the content we create has to be aspirational and fun to watch, otherwise, what are we doing? This should be the way advertising works– agencies come up with cool and fresh concepts, and directors elevate them to an even higher level of storytelling and narrative.
"Of course, knowing that people like you are actually enjoying it means a lot because the content we create has to be aspirational and fun to watch, otherwise, what are we doing?"
What is your best travel memory? Most delicious food consumed while traveling? Worst food tasted? Your favorite place you’ve ever been?
We have been together for 12 years and we have traveled so much, these are such tough questions to answer!
Our favorite travel memory was in 2012, when we traveled around Australia with a van we bought from an electrician for roughly 1000 Au$ and turned it into our home! We were in our early 20s– we had never left home or owned anything, so that was our first car and first home. We became gypsies for almost a year, working on farms when we needed the money (we also needed that experience to apply for a second year visa) and doing woofing (working for food and accommodation) in remote areas where we were literally cutting barbed wire for living… reading it seems awful, but this was the best experience ever! We were living in nature, doing jobs that we would have never imagined, meeting people that are now so far from our “world…” and living that simple life for a while made us realize how lucky we are to be doing what we are doing now.
"We became gypsies for almost a year, working on farms when we needed the money (we also needed that experience to apply for a second year visa) and doing woofing (working for food and accommodation) in remote areas where we were literally cutting barbed wire for living… "
The most delicious food we have consumed while traveling is Pho. Our Melbourne best friend introduced us to it and Italy in those years was not at all a place where you could find international restaurants (apart from sushi! That’s the only exotic cuisine we had!) And now Pho (even if now we are vegan) became our comfort food, we always go to Nha Trang in New York, but we still believe the Pho in Preston, Melbourne was the best!
The worst food was a food with intestines and God knows what in China. Erika’s brain has completely removed it from memory while Matteo still remembers the fragrance!
Our favorite place is the Italian Dolomites, but if you don’t have time to go all the way to Italy, we would say Big Sur!
Last summer, you made the Instagram book series Felicitazioni which was a travel story… is there a sequel coming?
Felicitazioni doesn’t have a sequel yet, but there will be!
What’s on your radar for the fall?
We are literally living week by week without plans, but we definitely have some video projects in our brains that we want to shoot in Brooklyn. We need a dialogue writer… anyone interested in some humorous crazy collaboration?
"We need a dialogue writer… anyone interested in some humorous crazy collaboration?"
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