JEDDAH, 28 February 2005 — “Lights! Action! Camera!” is often heard on Hollywood film stages, but it may be echoing more and more through the Kingdom now that the first Saudi-produced television commercial is hitting the airwaves.
The commercial, brought to you by Signal and the Saudi Dental Society, uses Saudi actors and actresses, a Saudi camera crew, Saudi producer and a Saudi director, as well as real Saudi schoolchildren in a real Saudi school. In fact, the ad couldn’t be more Saudi.
“The more you make it real and the more you can relate to the person who is really close to you, the more convincing the commercial becomes because you can relate to the person who comes from your country and shares your background and concerns,” said Mahir, the marketing executive for a retailer.
If Mahir’s explanation sounds a little confusing, maybe Hala the housewife can bring it down to Earth.
“I was able to relate to the commercial,” she said. “It helped me relate to it. I prefer Saudis to advertise the product because they understand my needs and make the commercial more appealing.”
As a housewife and mother, people like Hala are exactly who the sponsors are trying to reach, and this is a fact that was not lost on Unilever, the consumer goods company that has been doing business in the Kingdom for 16 years, which brings us to Moutaz the mover. Moutaz Jad, that is, associate creative director of the advertising agency that produced the commercial. Jad said having Saudis produce and act in the ad was a crucial element to deliver the message to the targeted consumers.
“One of the choices was to go to Cairo or Beirut and use talent to do the ad, but we preferred to get actual Saudis to add to the realism of the commercial,” said Jad.
The company preferred to have a real Saudi advertisement for Saudi consumers instead of creating a commercial with actors from other countries, hanging thobes and abayas on them and teaching them to sound like Saudis. The result was that when the commercial aired, people were able to relate to these children and their real dialect.
Jad was also the art director of this ad and noted that all the creators and actors were from Saudi Arabia. He said ad agencies would have done this sooner except for the barriers of the limited resources and technical support.
“There are many Saudis who would love to get into the market of production because it is a rich field and has a big market and demand,” said Jad.
The adman noted Saudi Arabia has never been particularly interested in building a film school or institutions that could support young people who would love to work in media or cinematography. Eventually, when they graduate, they’re able to provide the technical support for grand commercials and productions. Many filmmakers start off doing commercials, and after gaining enough experience they move to bigger challenges, such as cinema and television series.
“Working in the advertising field where one gets to be a creator or part of the crew is a good introduction to TV and cinematography,” said Jad.
Jad explained the importance of having Saudis create and act the advertisement. “The book of sales is in Saudi Arabia, so at least I should speak to them, know their language, their needs and speak more to them,” he said.
The success of the commercial prompted Signal to ask the advertising agency to develop an oral hygiene campaign, and they are now working on producing another commercial.
“Although there are limited resources, this first step should push Saudis to break into the production field,” said Jad.
So in a land where many business sectors are ordered to Saudize by the government, the market is dictating the move in the advertising sector and creating a success story that both businesses and Saudization officials should love.
Thank Hala the housewife and millions of her counterparts across the Kingdom and Moutaz the mover and the ad agencies and businesses that want to reach her. Instant Saudization? Maybe they should make a commercial.
