We’re living (and working) through weird times, and it’s not an understatement to describe the current conversations around AI and creativity as an existential crisis. Are the robots coming for our jobs, or are they opening new creative doors for us? It’s a dramatic question! Which is why, instead of adding to the pile of think pieces, we decided to lock arms with our AI besties to make a rock opera about the situation.

The project, directed by DC CDs Jessica Wyatt and Jessea Perry Hankins (aka Swamp & Bonnet) and produced by Keenan Hemje and Banana Stand, our in-house production arm, combines Midjourney, Runway, ChatGPT, Suno, Flow, and Higgsfield into one delirious odyssey. The lyrics and music track were developed with ChatGPT, Suno, and a lot of human meddling. Once we had the properly face-melting robot jam, the DC creative department worked with Midjourney to create visuals. The brief: what does creativity look like in the future? To unify these many visions, we developed a narrative frame: A man in a bunny suit, our officially unofficial mascot, watches interdimensional television on a desolate planet. Animation, motion graphics, editing, finishing, and sound design were also helmed by Jessica Wyatt, Banana Stand’s creative lead.

We’re going to hold your hand when we say this: The idea that AI makes production instant or effortless is a myth. Plenty of human hours went into this piece, hours spent thinking, shaping, revising, experimenting, finessing, and sparring with robots over prompts. The result is something we never could have made without AI – and something AI could never have made without us. In the end, it’s not human vs. machine; it’s human with machine. And for now, we’re still the loudest part of that duet.

To see more of our human-driven work, check out some of the links below.

And it truly was a sad hour to learn that David passed away last week at the tender age of 46. He was the backbone of our campaign that encouraged harried Mainlanders to set aside tireless striving to reconnect with the things that matter most: family, friends and the natural world. And he was the heart as well — working with Brutus to ensure every script authentically embodied the true spirit of aloha.

The campaign ran for over a decade helping to grow Kona from a local craft beer to a major player in the market. But even after the campaign ran its course, we stayed in touch, communicating often and even visiting. We were thrilled to follow the launch of David’s TV and movie career, including a role in this summer’s smash, Lilo & Stitch.

All of which just makes this moment sadder.

A hui hou, David Hekili Kenui Bell. Until we meet again. Mahalo for all your important work. But also for reminding us that work is not the most important thing.

This year, Lambie has primarily used her creative skills for campaigns centered on UNDO, California’s anti-tobacco initiative. She’s been instrumental in developing a documentary honoring three decades of UNDO’s positive impact. Moreover, Lambie has played a pivotal role in securing Duncan Channon’s new business, tapping into her performing arts background through reciting a series of original poems to sign PG&E.

“My creative work isn’t limited to client briefs. I use the skills I’ve honed in advertising to make positive change in my community,” said Lambie.

This penchant for combining art with strategic insight led Lambie to co-found the Oakland-based 501(c)3 nonprofit Yeah, Art! Under Lambie’s leadership, Yeah, Art! has obtained over $450,000 in grants, contracts and private funding while attracting support from corporate partners such as NBC, Microsoft, Kaiser Permanente and the Golden State Warriors.

We’re so damn proud of our associate creative director Madeline Lambie, who was recognized as an ADWEEK Agency All-Stars Rising Star. Now, you all get to see the wonder we enjoy on the daily.

Duncan Channon’s “Nicotine Equals” campaign strategy, intended to awaken parents to the teen vaping epidemic, got the judges attention at this year’s 4A’s Jay Chiat Awards. This award recognizes the best marketing and communications strategies in the industry so we’re stoked with the recognition. See the work here, and big thanks to our partners, APartnership and Acento, and the many hands who touched this work.

See you next year, 4A’s!

Kumi Croom, Duncan Channon’s first Managing Director, will oversee the account and project management teams, and will continue to lead the company’s EDI efforts.

During her nearly six years at Duncan Channon, Kumi has served as a champion for equity and representation, reimagining the agency’s recruitment, retention and EDI consciousness by creating its EDI Group, which she has led since 2019. The group includes staffers who are passionate about driving change in the agency’s BIPOC talent recruitment and retention efforts, as well as its culture and ways of reflecting diverse perspectives. Croom operationalized a culturally sensitive approach to ensure representation in the agency’s creative work, and built a Black/African American Culture Practice. In addition she has led the roll out of EDI training programs for the agency.

She served as Group Account Director beginning in 2017, leading the California Department of Public Health Tobacco Control Program account. In this role, she helped drive the work’s breakthrough success in changing perceptions about vaping and the use of flavored tobacco among the state’s multicultural residents. In the peak of the pandemic, she also assembled an integrated cross-agency team to win the California Department of Public Health business, and develop a campaign to build trust in COVID-19 vaccines.

“I’m honored to take on this role and look forward to working with a larger cross section of team members,” said Croom. “Being an independent shop allows us to make meaningful changes and take risks. I welcome the opportunity to join the partners in helping to sculpt the culture of the agency and add my ideas as we continue to grow.”

We’ve got the story below or give AdAge a click and read it here.

By Aleda Stam

The California Department of Health has named San Francisco-based Duncan Channon as the lead creative and media agency for a new $40 million opioid education campaign.

The two-year contract was decided after an RFP process initiated by the state in October that called for a California agency with no conflicts of interest, including work with tobacco, e-cigarette, cannabis or pharmaceutical companies.

The campaign comes as fentanyl-related deaths have surged in the last few years, more than tripling among Californians aged 20-34 between 2018 and 2020. The $40 million allotment is part of $45.8 million allocated to the state’s Opioid Settlements Fund State Operations, which consists of settlement money from litigation with companies accused of contributing to the opioid crisis including McKinsey, Janssen Pharmaceuticals (owned by Johnson & Johnson), McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen.

The campaign will start in two phases. In the first, Duncan Channon will immediately begin media planning and buying for an existing Centers for Disease Control education campaign. It wasn’t immediately clear which agency produced that campaign.

In the second, Duncan Channon will start strategizing to develop a new campaign that defines the opioid and fentanyl crisis for Californians, displays the paths that can lead to opioid use and connects to those most at risk—young adults aged 16-39.

In an effort to “meet people where they are,” the agency is giving the campaign a tone of empathy instead of using scare tactics, said Duncan Channon CEO and Partner Andy Berkenfield.

“The last thing we are going to do is wag a finger at anybody or follow the failed tactics of ‘Just Say No,’ which has never really worked,” Berkenfield said. “The state strongly believes—and we are very much in line with them—that our job is to engage in empathetic conversation and ultimately reduce harm.”

It will also work to normalize new strategies to reduce the prevalence of opioid and fentanyl overdose instances, which includes raising awareness about how teens and young adults carrying Narcan can help save someone experiencing a fentanyl overdose. Properly conveying that message also means navigating the often contentious parent-teen relationships and breaking down stigmas.

“We have to bring those groups of people together and have them have a shared understanding,” Berkenfield said. “We want parents to be supportive of kids who want to bring Narcan to a party, so we have to look at the situation from both sides of the conversation.”

The work is expected to launch in 2024 and will include creative to target Latino, Black and AANHPI communities through partnerships with agency partners Acento and APartnership. The public education effort will include TV, radio, out-of-home, social and digital media and influencer activations, as well as unpaid media by partner PR agency Berlin Rosen.

This is Duncan Channon’s latest win in California’s public service and health space. The agency won a $40 million contract from the state in 2021 to create a campaign strengthening public support for vaccines. The agency also worked on a statewide effort to raise awareness for COVID therapeutics this year and has led multicultural integrated public education work for the California Tobacco Prevention Program since 2015.

With this exciting new client partnership, DC is responsible for leading the brand’s digital and social strategy and creative, digital media planning, influencer marketing and experiential activations.

“We were impressed with DC’s creative thinking, and their ability to activate fresh ideas across all channels including digital, social, and experiential.” said Sarah Galletii, founder, chief creative officer of Tattooed Chef. “DC also shares Tattooed Chef’s ambition to be a lifestyle brand that challenges the conventions of traditional food marketing.”

Tattooed Chef is in a period of rapid growth. Building on its successful frozen portfolio that included four of the five fastest-moving plant-based frozen food entrée launches in 2021, the brand has continued to prioritize new product innovation and expand distribution. Tattooed Chef now offers 140 plant-based products, including its signature ready-to-cook meals, acai and smoothie bowls in the freezer aisle, as well as plant-based refrigerated bars and grain-free, dairy-free tortilla chips.

You can watch Steven’s winning story here, along with our other campaign videos and get inspired to start your own personal story to quit smoking for good.

Taking creative self expression beyond beauty, DC’s curation of TikTok influencers helped e.l.f. launch the most viral organic ad campaign ever created on the platform, breaking records for views and user generated content.

Our in-house team strategically tapped a diverse range of TikTok influencers to help the brand target drive awareness and consideration among new consumers especially Gen Z.

Collaborating with partner agencies and the e.l.f. team, we were able to create a campaign that became the fastest TikTok campaign to reach 1 billion views, garnering 7 billion views total.

5 million user generated videos were created, including from celebrities like Ellen, Lizzo, and Reese Witherspoon, who joined in of their own accord.

The #eyeslipsface campaign was the first-ever ad to hold the #1 trend spot on TikTok. The original song hit #4 on Spotify’s Global Viral charts and was added to 300,000 Spotify playlists.
Media coverage included Vogue, Rolling Stone, Bustle, BuzzFeed, Vox, Adweek and Forbes.

As the original campaign anthem song’s popularity soared, the brand created a full length track and produced a music video to celebrate its success and satisfy the demands of fans.

Entering the foster care system is a moment that forever alters the course of a child’s life. They’re forced to grapple with a spectrum of experience and emotions that would be hard enough for an adult to face—which is why it’s so important for them to have an advocate at their side. Our latest project for SFCASA is a short film featuring a former foster youth who didn’t have that kind of consistent support. As a dancer, he has found movement to be a singularly powerful way for him to process and share his story, one that is difficult—but important—to hear.

The film, Moving Through, was created with dancer Kardale Holland and visionary director/cinematographer/composer LAKE Ѫ, in a collaboration marked by genuine connection and serendipity. It offers an unflinching view into one story in the hopes that viewers will be motivated to help SFCASA in their mission of giving all foster children the opportunity to thrive.