KesselsKramer X ARTE

posted by Robyn Pitts November 15, 2023

KesselsKramer have teamed up with public broadcaster ARTE for their very first brand campaign. Made for the public, and funded by the public, it was only logical to involve that very same public in the campaign. In order to define the brand, KesselsKramer simply asked random ARTE viewers: “What is ARTE to you?”. The honest answers to that question form the foundation of ARTE’s brand campaign.

From the comfort of their home, random people from all over Germany explain how they feel about ARTE. Each of their opinions instantly forms ARTE’s latest pay-off. The campaign positions ARTE as ‘the-cat-channel’, thanks to Emilio who once saw a cat documentary on ARTE, but also as ‘the-no-nonsense-channel’, thanks to Erika and Detlef who do just don’t like to watch nonsense, and even as ‘the-terrace-channel’, thanks to Guido who watches ARTE on his terrace.

The diversity of the answers signifies the diversity of ARTE itself. “If you ask people about ARTE, many reflexively say ‘ah yes, the culture channel’”, ARTE explains. “And, sure, that’s how it started. But 30 years down the line, ARTE has become much much more. Arte is cheeky on TikTok, compelling with documentaries on YouTube, and exciting with a Scandinavian thriller series on arte.tv.” ARTE is something else for whoever watches it. The campaign invites the audience to develop their own opinion and pay-off: what’s ARTE to you?

The campaign was shot by Mafalda Rakoš, a German-Austrian photographer with an anthropological background. Her work is primarily documentary, and for ARTE, she used that quality to create honest portraits and stories with the protagonists of the campaign.

ARTE makes you think from KesselsKramer on Vimeo.

The long-lasting collaboration between KesselsKramer and ARTE began in 2017, when the agency started creating occasional campaigns for specific ARTE Germany programs such as Summer of Dreams or the documentary series ARTE:RE. Since 2021, KesselsKramer has been responsible for all of ARTE’s communication, resulting in a variety of campaigns for ARTE Journal, ARTE Series, ARTE Concert, and now – as the cherry on the cake – for ARTE itself.