THE SHIP SONG PROJECT

Bronze Spike

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TitleTHE SHIP SONG PROJECT
BrandSYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
Product / ServiceSYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
CategoryB01. Corporate Information
EntrantTHE MONKEYS Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Entrant Company:THE MONKEYS Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Advertising Agency:THE MONKEYS Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Justin Drape The Monkeys Executive Creative Director
Noah Regan The Monkeys Creative Director
Noah Regan The Monkeys Copywriter
Noah Regan The Monkeys Art Director
Justin Drape The Monkeys Copywriter
Thea Carone The Monkeys Head Of Broadcast Production
Fabio Buresti The Monkeys Executive Planning Director
Dan Beaumont The Monkeys Group Content Director
Suzy Coman The Monkeys Content Director
Kate Behne The Monkeys Content Manager
Paul Goldman Exit Films Director
Caroline David Exit Films Producer
Elliott Wheeler Turning Studios Music Director/Arranger
David Gross Definition Films Editor
Victoria Doidge Sydney Opera House Director Of Marketing/Communications/Customer Services Soh
Stephen O’connor Sydney Opera House Head Of Marketing/Performing Arts Soh
Vanessa Duscio Sydney Opera House Head Of Pr Soh

Results and Effectiveness

In the 24 hours after its launch, the film clip was shared online 1.7 million times and was picked up by every major television news program and featured in every major Australian newspaper. There was also extensive coverage across international press. The single reached 34 on the iTunes singles chart and trended on Twitter and YouTube for four days. Over $2 million in free PR, editorial and social media was earned at launch. The Ship Song Project helped SOH achieve a 40% increase in ticket (August 2010 vs. August 2011). Best of all, $0 was spent on traditional media.

Creative Execution

The creative idea was to invite Sydneysiders inside the iconic building showing a totally different side to ‘The House’. Through the medium of a music video, people were able to access the most private parts of the building, thus discovering a space more intimate and accessible than just the clichéd sails that adorn the landmark. Set to a reworking of Nick Cave’s immortal ballad, ‘The Ship Song’, a video was created that featured performances by some of Australia and The World’s preeminent artists. It was launched online via a seeding program on social networking platforms in conjunction with a live media event at the venue. 3 x 30 second TVC's were created and played on national television. The song was released as a single and played on national radio and was available for download on iTunes. In addition to this posters were created and distributed around Sydney city.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

Research discovered that while Australians all over shared a deep sense of pride in the SOH, most Sydneysiders didn’t consider it more than an iconic Australian venue that’s home to the classical arts and other ‘elitist’ events. It just wasn’t the destination they’d ever think of visiting as a regular part of their lives in Sydney. The crux of the strategy was to get people to think about the SOH as a cultural hub that ‘democratised creativity’ – not just an exclusive, all conquering bastion for global creativity, but an open and welcoming creative space that is accessible to everyone.