Qantas has unveiled the first TV commercial in its new marketing campaign, which features the faces of over 25,000 travellers forming the Qantas logo in a mosaic tile.
Set to music composed by Daniel Johns, best known as the frontman for world-conquering Aussie rock band Silverchair, the TV spot will premiere this Sunday, July 22 – but you can check it out right here for yourself.
"The commercial takes the viewer on an aerial tour canvassing scenes of Australians going about their everyday activities and ends with a portrait of the faces" says Qantas, "supporting the narrative that 'Australians fly for many different reasons, we fly for one, you're the reason we fly'."
The opus, named Atlas, was recorded by Daniel Johns in conjunction with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and is Johns' first piece of commercial work.
“When Qantas first approached me, I agreed to the project as I was really into the idea of creating a piece of music that represented Australia" Johns says.
"I wanted it to sound big, something special. It was a conscious effort to create a good piece of music and not just a jingle. I've also wanted to work with the Australian Chamber Orchestra for a long time now so it was great to finally be able to do that."
Here's a behind-the-scenes video on the creation and recording of Atlas, which you'll hear plenty of times in the future as the soundtrack for the new Qantas brand and Olympic advertising.
However, Qantas says the iconic “I still call Australia home” campaign – which launched over a dozen years ago, with the Sydney Olympics in 2000 – isn’t being put out to pasture.
“There’s no doubt customers love it and it will still play an important role for us, especially around national occasions” says Qantas marketing exec Lewis Pullen says. “It’s very much our ‘national anthem’.”
What's your call on the new TV commercial?
About David Flynn
David Flynn is the editor of Australian Business Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
1 on 20/7/12 by nix584